Resident Assistants around UMBC are required to hold events for their residents and communities on a regular basis as part of their jobs. Every now and then, however, one of these programs is so extraordinary it stands well above the rest.
On November 12th, Erickson RA Patricia Orrence held "Ace of Cupcakes", a program aimed at residents of her floor to help advertise for the annual EBI Benchmarking Survey. This survey is conducted by Residential Life to identify student needs, departmental strengths and weaknesses, and to track changes in those areas over time. However, getting residents to take this survey is notoriously difficult, despite the numerous incentives offered by Residential Life. An RA in her second year, Patricia was aware of this and wanted to ensure that her residents were willing to come to the program. Ask any college student, and the one thing that ensures they will come to an event is free food, and especially free dessert. However, Patricia was conscious of the fact that several of her residents were on restricted diets, including a number of vegetarians and vegans. To incorporate all of these needs, "Ace of Cupcakes" included vegan cupcakes, specially made to avoid using any animal products, and homemade vegan fondant icing, which attendees could use to decorate their own cupcakes. Patricia also provided exotic teas for other refreshment.
The program was a resounding success amongst staff and students, and was particularly enjoyed by vegan students, who are frequently unable to find desserts that fit within their diets. As a result of the effort Patricia put into incorporating the dietary needs of the Erickson community, this program received several awards, first from the UMBC Chapter of the National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH) and then from the Central Atlantic Affiliate of College & University Residence Halls, as Campus and Regional Social Program of the Month for November.
Monday night, it was announced that Ace of Cupcakes had been recognized once more as the National Social Program of November by the National Association of College & University Residence Halls, Inc. (NACURH), the largest student-run organization in the world. NACURH and its affiliated service organization, NRHH, include schools from across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Qatar, Australia, and Hong Kong, making this accomplishment truly amazing. National Awards of this sort have rarely been given to UMBC, this being only the tenth in the school's history and the second this year.
On behalf of the National Residence Hall Honorary and the National Association of College & University Residence Halls, congratulations to Patricia Orrence for an outstanding program.
To learn more about the "Ace of Cupcakes" program, read the award nomination at http://otms.nrhh.org/otm_program.php3?otmid=119171&vid=t2aj1mx53ebqzggj . For more information about NRHH and the Of The Month (OTM) program, please click the "Visit Website" button below.
On November 12th, Erickson RA Patricia Orrence held "Ace of Cupcakes", a program aimed at residents of her floor to help advertise for the annual EBI Benchmarking Survey. This survey is conducted by Residential Life to identify student needs, departmental strengths and weaknesses, and to track changes in those areas over time. However, getting residents to take this survey is notoriously difficult, despite the numerous incentives offered by Residential Life. An RA in her second year, Patricia was aware of this and wanted to ensure that her residents were willing to come to the program. Ask any college student, and the one thing that ensures they will come to an event is free food, and especially free dessert. However, Patricia was conscious of the fact that several of her residents were on restricted diets, including a number of vegetarians and vegans. To incorporate all of these needs, "Ace of Cupcakes" included vegan cupcakes, specially made to avoid using any animal products, and homemade vegan fondant icing, which attendees could use to decorate their own cupcakes. Patricia also provided exotic teas for other refreshment.
The program was a resounding success amongst staff and students, and was particularly enjoyed by vegan students, who are frequently unable to find desserts that fit within their diets. As a result of the effort Patricia put into incorporating the dietary needs of the Erickson community, this program received several awards, first from the UMBC Chapter of the National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH) and then from the Central Atlantic Affiliate of College & University Residence Halls, as Campus and Regional Social Program of the Month for November.
Monday night, it was announced that Ace of Cupcakes had been recognized once more as the National Social Program of November by the National Association of College & University Residence Halls, Inc. (NACURH), the largest student-run organization in the world. NACURH and its affiliated service organization, NRHH, include schools from across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Qatar, Australia, and Hong Kong, making this accomplishment truly amazing. National Awards of this sort have rarely been given to UMBC, this being only the tenth in the school's history and the second this year.
On behalf of the National Residence Hall Honorary and the National Association of College & University Residence Halls, congratulations to Patricia Orrence for an outstanding program.
To learn more about the "Ace of Cupcakes" program, read the award nomination at http://otms.nrhh.org/otm_program.php3?otmid=119171&vid=t2aj1mx53ebqzggj . For more information about NRHH and the Of The Month (OTM) program, please click the "Visit Website" button below.
