I have been a student at the University of Massachusetts for four years and a resident assistant for a year and a half. I will be graduating in May, but before I leave I request that everyone help build a better UMass rather than tear it apart. All thoughts expressed in this article are my own and do not necessarily reflect on Residence Life.

In my time here at UMass I have seen people complain about different groups of authority on campus without offering any solutions. People most frequently attack UMass police and Res. Life. This only exacerbates the problems.

The rift between UMPD and UMass residents is one of the worst results of this mud slinging. I don’t blame anyone for this. The chasm is a result of many factors. I will not say that UMPD is perfect. Just like any organization, they have their flaws. Nonetheless, we should be glad that we have them because when push comes to shove I have seen them act with great integrity time and again.

Despite UMPD’s best efforts to keep UMass a safe living place for all of us, they are almost always portrayed as an evil entity out to get the students. UMPD does not make the rules; we as a society make them. UMPD officers dedicate their lives to helping enforce these rules. We should thank them for this, not ostracize them. This ostracizing looks even worse when you realize that in addition to enforcing the law, they run several educational and community outreach programs, most notably Rape Aggression Defense training.

UMPD’s disconnection from the student body is partially a result of how we have treated them. This disconnection hurts both them and us.

UMPD is working to remedy this. They have community officers creating personal relationships between UMPD and RAs. Their connection with the student body is, however, harder to bridge than with the RAs. In order to help bridge this gap, they now have students in uniform helping to patrol campus. UMPD is learning and growing. We should praise their efforts, not belittle them. If you have a problem with them, go tell them. They will listen, and if they can, they will help you and they will implement your suggestions.

When people are not bashing UMPD, they are attacking Res. Life. This animosity makes no sense to me because I think Res. Life is the one organization on campus whose sole purpose has always been to help the students.

As UMass has repeatedly been hit by budget cuts many departments have started to concentrate more on campus politics, rather than just students. These departments see this change of focus as the only way they can survive. Res. Life, on the other hand, has always worked for the students.

This is partly because Res. Life has the highest ratio of student employees to full time employees of any department on campus. As RAs, students are what make Res. Life work.

For those of you who have never been or known an RA, you might be surprised at the two hardest parts of the job. RAs have to get past the persona of being an evil rule enforcer. You cannot do anything with your residents until they no longer view you this way. I know a lot of people who have quit as a result of never being able to overcome this stigma.

The ironic part is this stigma impairs the best part of the job: helping residents. The primary role of RAs is not policy enforcement. If it were, RAs would have a lot more power. RAs mainly assist residents. They let you in when you lock yourself out, have socials and educationals, listen to your problems, and even go and ask others to respect you and your rights when you don’t feel comfortable doing it yourself. RAs may not be able to do everything, but they know where to direct you if they can’t.

The second hardest thing is documenting residents’ policy violations.

I do not know any RA who enjoys this. Who actually enjoys getting other people in trouble? Do you? If that is not a good enough reason to not want to document a situation, it also means hours of work for Res. Life. In addition, you have probably just created an enemy. The more mature residents get over it and understand, but there are always those who never will.

Res. Life and UMPD have one major thing in common; they are both

thankless jobs. They need people who want to work for the betterment of

UMass, not for personal gain. Neither job grants much free time or money.

Yes, both organizations have problems, but both are working to solve them with the help of students.

The next time you feel the need to lash out, please think about what

you are doing. Are you helping to fix the problem, or are you just making a worse UMass for all of us? Please also consider why you are mad. Did they do something wrong, or did you? If you were wrong, have the self-respect and integrity to take responsibility for your own actions. Making mistakes is part of life and no one will blame you for that. However, they will not respect you if cannot admit to your own mistakes.

Finally, I ask you to help out. UMass is only as good as we make it.

Become an RA, join an RSO, vote, or do something. Every little bit helps. This school could be so much more. However, we can only realize this dream by working together to build a better UMass.

Matthew Stubblefield is a UMass student.