Two RAs Forced to Resign; Two More on Probation

In the wake of an incident just before Thanksgiving break, two RAs have been asked to resign while two others have been placed on probation. Choosing resignation over termination, Shaina Lyon, 19, and Michele Powell, 19, will be vacating their rooms at the end of the semester following an episode involving four R.A.s and alleged underage drinking. The other two involved, Martinetti RA Christabella Cherubino, and Arthur Hall RA, Ashley Connolly, are on probation following that incident.

“We try to look carefully at each individual involved in any situation. The first question is: what was the scenario?” said Coordinator of Residential Living, Jeff Bickford.

On Nov. 16, the Friday night before Thanksgiving break, Arthur/Martinetti HA Amy Serino received an AOL instant message from an anonymous Martinetti resident advising her to check up on her RAs. She walked over to Martinetti to visit Cherubino and Powell, who were on duty that night. They were with Connolly and Lyon in Cherubino’s room.
“I feel so stupid for participating. I really just made the last-minute decision to, like, ‘Oh. I’m going to have a drink,’” said Connolly, 20. “And then knock-knock on the door.”

According to those involved, the event was spontaneous and short-lived.

“The drinking only really went on for about 15 minutes, but Christabella didn’t drink a thing,” Connolly said. “Everybody was just in her room, but it looked like she was supplying to minors. It looked like she had just been pouring us drinks all night. But that wasn’t the case at all.”

Cherubino panicked.

“Of course, I’m… freaking out,” said Cherubino, 21. “It makes me shake thinking about it now.”

Over the course of the night, Serino spoke to the RAs involved. Neither Public Safety nor the police was brought into the situation. No breathalyzer tests were taken.

“In any alcohol incident, it’s at the discretion of the hall advisor [to involve Public Safety or the police]. That decision is made based on whether there’s a concern for anyone’s safety,” Bickford said. “In a general, normal, run-of-the-mill Thursday night alcohol incident, we would only ask for assistance from Public Safety and the Sherriff’s department if we were concerned about someone’s safety. Otherwise, we’re just getting our students into more trouble than they need to be.”

In this case, Serino held to that procedure.

“Essentially, I went into a situation, something that violated the RA contract, wrote a written report, handed my written report to Michele Whitmore, and after doing so, Michele Whitmore made the decisions,” Serino said.

Following Serino’s report, Residence Life initiated an investigation.

“When this was brought to my attention, I was actually not here,” said Director of Residence Life Michele Whitmore. “I was in New York at the time. My intent was to connect with everyone that was involved upon their return from the Thanksgiving break. So I did contact each one and asked them to come in and meet with me and to also provide a written statement to address what had occurred the Friday before break. I met with each individual involved.”

The Johnson State College RA contract and RA Code of Conduct contain clear policies regarding drug and alcohol use. One clause states that “If I am under legal drinking age, I will not consume alcoholic beverages during my employment as an RA If I am of the legal drinking age, I will drink responsibly and only with others who are of the legal drinking age.”

A first offense is punishable by probation or termination, according to the RA Code of Conduct. Use of alcohol or drugs while on duty is punishable only by termination.

Ultimately, however, the decision was up to Whitmore, who said she weighed a number of factors before coming to a conclusion.

“I took everything that was brought to my attention into consideration after it was said and put into writing and started making what I felt to be the fairest decisions on each case,” said Whitmore. “Each person had a different level of responsibility. It wasn’t an easy decision to make, and it affects the whole entire staff.”

Powell, however, felt the decision to ask for her resignation was unfair. “One of the things that Michele [Whitmore] said when she was talking to all of us is that she wanted to make a decision that was fair and consistent throughout the entire staff. The way this has gone down hasn’t really been consistent and fair throughout the entire staff. I would have been happier if all four of us had been fired or all four of us had been put on probation.”

Connoly, on the other hand, felt she had been treated fairly, noting that she had “owned up” to what she did when confronted. “We’re on probation for the rest of the year,” she said. “It’s not just for the rest of the semester. Basically we’re not allowed to breathe wrong. I feel like I have a spotlight over my head, and that if I do anything wrong, I’m going to get in trouble for it. The way I see it, though, it’s a good thing because, first of all, I understand that it’s well deserved, and, second of all, I think it’ll help me do my job a lot better.”

Cherubino would like to put the whole situation behind her, noting that it has been both nerve racking and sad. “We’re all just kind of trying to recover from it now,” she said.

Although an effort was made to keep the specifics of the situation somewhat confidential following disciplinary action, word spread quickly.

“I’ve had a lot of residents confronting me about things, and it’s very hard not telling them the truth,” Connolly said. “In Arthur Hall, we’re more friendly, I think, with our residents than in other halls, and it’s harder to avoid them everyday and avoid the topic that’s going around. It’s such a hot topic right now.”

Many students feel that the disparity in punishment between the four RAs was unjust because there was no physical proof of alcohol consumption.

According to Resident Life, however, alcohol bottles were collected from the scene and written testimonies were taken into heavy consideration.

“I don’t think it’s fair at all. I think it’s unjust—the whole situation. I don’t think any of them deserved to get fired,” said third-floor Arthur Hall resident Colleen Twomey, 18. “She [Shaina Lyon] was always there. She always had her door open. She was like, ‘You know, you guys can come in any time and just hang out.’ She was always willing to make an effort to have floor programs like ice cream socials, even when people didn’t show up. She always made her presence known. She was always happy. If she was in a bad mood, she didn’t let other people know it. She’s cool. Definitely.”

First-floor Arthur Hall resident Marilla Hewitt, 18, is also unhappy about the decision.

“I think that Michele is an amazing RA,” she said. “She’s done a wonderful job building a community down here and it sucks that she’s leaving.”

For Powell, whose appeal of the decision has just been turned down, a return to campus for the spring term may not be possible. “For me, I’m not sure what’s going on next semester,” she said. “I can’t really afford to come back to school, or to live on campus anyway, and I don’t think I’ll be able to afford to commute with gas prices the way they are.”

Whitmore stressed that the entire situation was regrettable, both for the Residence Life staff and for the residents affected. “We’re a tight staff... It’s tough to have to pick up the pieces, in all honesty,” she said. “There are specific responsibilities that then have to be covered by other RAs and the individuals involved were close. So it’s hard to see someone not be part of the staff that you’ve really connected with and that you really care for. In that respect, it’s been extremely hard.”

For Colleen Twomey, the results of that decision have also been hard. “Now that I don’t have an RA, it’s really difficult to find somebody to talk to. Going right to the HA is always a difficult decision,” she said.

Whitmore stressed that regrettable as this incident has been, it does not prevent those involved from becoming RA’s in the future. All of them, she said, had performed their jobs well. “I hate to say that one incident overshadows everything that any person has done as an RA,They did a lot of great things on their floors and I don’t want that to be forgotten. I don’t want that to be just pushed aside.” Read More

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