I am from Houston, Texas and am currently a sophomore at Stephen F.
Austin State University. My major is Criminal Justice with a Political
Science minor. My current GPA is a 2.8 and I have been living on campus
for four semesters.
My Attributes:

Hard Working

Organized

Responsible

Honest

Creative

Social Skills

Dependable

Focused/Determined
During my time at Stephen F. Austin State University, I have joined The Lumberjack
Marching Band (LMB), Residence Hall Association (RHA), Student Activities Association
(SAA), and National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH).
My first involvement in RHA was when I joined my Hall Council in Kerr Hall. I ran for
President and I got the position. While being in Hall Council I attended RHA’s events such
as Casino Night, Parents Day, Fall Fest, Holiday Extravaganza, and Best Week Ever. Our
Hall Council also decorated our hall for Parents Day and Showcase Saturdays.
At the end of the year, Kerr Hall was in first place
to bid for Hall of the Year. We presented at
Senate and won First Year Hall of the Year for
2012-2013.
I always attended RHA meetings, such as General
Assembly (GA) and Senate; I also made sure that
our Hall Council was prepared for roll call for every
GA.
One of my jobs as Vice President is to handle
and distribute the multiple OCM care packages
throughout the year. I made sure they were
delivered on time and handled complications in a
This year was the first year hosting a
Committee Retreat. During this retreat we
taught the committee chairs a variety of
timely manner. I acted as the liaison between
SFA and the OCM Company.
skills such as how to write proposals, and
legislation, how to fill out MRFs, leadership
skills, and communication tools.
We also taught them the purpose of their
committee and how to run it effectively.
The retreat was very successful and the
committee chairs left with many ideas for
the upcoming semester.
Another task of the Vice President is to oversee the Committee
Chairs. I assisted the Committee Chairs with the following:

Sports and Rec: Proposal- Hall v Hall and Tailgating

Fundraising: Proposal- Valentine’s Day Goodie Bag and Pie in
the Face during Best Week Ever

Housing: Proposal- U. Woods Central Office

Food Service: Hosted meetings every other Wednesday. I
provided the HD’S with paperwork to collect resident
feedback for meetings. This year’s meetings had the most
attendance than previous years. I advertised the meetings
at every GA, (since the meetings follow every GA), Worked
with ARAMARK supervisors.

Policy and Procedures: Wrote and passed Legislation
Welcome Jacks/Casino Night (After Hours): Welcome Jacks was one of the first programs I helped plan as an RHA
Executive. We picked Welcome Jack leaders and made the schedule for that week. During Welcome Jacks, I
taught many sessions, in order to help incoming freshmen learn about RHA and campus life at SFA. We also
planned casino night which is one of our first campus wide events. Lots of people came out and had a blast. I helped
with counting chips, making posters/signs, decorations, and set up/tear down.
Parents Day: I was the Volunteer Chair for Parents Day 2013. It was my job
to get as many people to help and volunteer for this event. We had a total
of 60 volunteers for this event. Also leading up to this event, we had three
packing parties to prepare for the event. It was my job to get volunteers
for these packing parties in order for Parents Day to run smoothly.
Homecoming: During the week of Homecoming, it is my job to make sure that RHA participated in the Spirit
Competition going on that week. When preparing for Homecoming, I hosted interest meetings, in order to help us
win the spirit competition that week and encourage residents to participate. I also made sure we had a roll call, an
idea for our display board and many more. Homecoming week was fun and it helped get RHA’s name out there.
Fall Fest: I helped prepare the Pie in the Face
fundraiser, but since the weather was bad, we
were not able to host the fundraiser. I also
helped with decorations and preparing the
music for this event.
Holiday Extravaganza: One of my jobs for Holiday Extravaganza was to get volunteers to help us set up the plaza for
the event. I made sure that the decorations were out and showed the volunteers where they could put the
decorations. I also helped with set up, tear down and prepared the music for the event.
Get on Board: I helped plan this event as well. I went and bought the raffle prizes for the event. I also helped
set up and tear down when the event was over. During the event, I helped with anything that was needed.
initiative
I attended my first conference, NACURH at the
University of Pittsburgh in June 2013. I learned a
lot at the conference and brought many ideas to
SFA to use during some of our events.
At this conference, I learned more about RHA,
Hall Council, my region (SWACURH), and fell even
more in love with RHA.
The regional conference, SWACURH, was hosted at Texas
Tech University in 2013. It was my first regional
conference. I attended many different sessions and learned
so much. I brought back some ideas that we could do in our
RHA. Also at this conference, I wrote my first regional
winning bid on Volunteer of the Year.
I was also given the chance to sit in President’s Board
Room, which was very interesting. I got to learn what other
RHA’s from other universities are doing. We were able to
discuss ideas and network.
RHA has two retreats; one in the fall, and one in the
spring. I helped plan both retreats and I got to teach many
sessions about leadership, planning an event, etc.
During retreat, we had the chance to get to know each hall
council and learn some of their plans for the year. We also
taught them how to run their hall council better. We
created leaders and informed the residents on RHA and
how to better their hall council.
I would like to be President of RHA, because I love RHA and I want to see it grow. I love helping the residents
and seeing the residents evolve as leaders. I have some goals that I would like to accomplish in this upcoming year
to make RHA develop as an organization. I have had a year a get to know the ins and outs of RHA and I would like
to continue learning more as President.
The skills and knowledge that I have learned throughout my year as Vice President can help me in the president
position. I have learned time management skills, problem solving skills, and how to effectively multitask. I have
learned time management skills throughout the year. With school, RHA events, meetings and other organizations, I
have learned how to manage my time. One way I have learned how to do this is having a planner and making sure I
keep that updated so that I will not forget anything. I also like to start things a week in advance, so I won’t have
to rush at the last minute. I have also learned how to multitask and get both jobs done. One way that I did this
was getting help from the executive board and delegating tasks. For example, when care packages come in, and we
have an event that same week, I would have to split time between the care packages and the event. Another thing
that I learned was problem solving skills. If there was a problem with a care package, I would have to figure out
the problem and fix it as soon as possible. All these skills will help me become the best president that I can be.
RHA Goals:

Help RHA grow as an

organization

Work well with executive

Stay organized
board

Work well and efficiently
with RHA executive board
Have programs that flow

Stay on top of things
smoothly

Be professional
Help members grow as

Be the face of the

Communicate well
residents

Complete task on time
leaders

Personal Goals:
Goals as President:
Make positive changes

Communicate well
and advisors
February 24, 2014
To Whom It May Concern,
It is an honor to write this letter of recommendation for Ms. Jewel Elliott, as she attempts to gain
the presidency of the Residence Hall Association. Jewel is the current Vice President of the Residence
Hall Association and an excellent role model for her peers. Throughout this letter, I will highlight three
specific reasons why Jewel should be elected to the RHA president position.
First, Jewel is very experienced within the Residence Hall Association. During her first year at
Stephen F. Austin State University, Jewel joined hall council and was elected role of president in Kerr
Hall. Under Jewel’s leadership, the “Kerr Kuties” excelled in impacting the all-female community.
Additionally, Jewel helped the ladies of Kerr win Hall of the Year in the 1st year hall category.
Second, Jewel is well-connected at SFA, something that is tough to achieve in just one year. She
is involved with organizations such the Lumberjack Marching Band, Student Activities Association
(SAA), and National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH). Her relationship and involvement with the SAA
and NRHH organizations is essential for RHA in maintaining friendly partnerships.
Third, Jewel’s strong interpersonal communication skills are essential to the demanding
requirements of the RHA president position. As a Criminal Justice major, Jewel has quickly learned the
importance of having a professional appearance, attitude, and demeanor. Additionally, she has learned
how to be more reliable, hardworking, and flexible
Without a doubt, Jewel is more than qualified to lead the Residence Hall Association. Please
contact via email at beeksje@yahoo.com or mobile, 832-297-4828 if you have any further questions.
Regards,
James Beeks
Assistant Hall Director, Lumberjack Landing
SFASU – Residence Life Department
Solomon Delaney
SFA PO BOX 15916
Nacogdoches, TX, 75962
409-338-0446
solomondelaney@yahoo.com
February 21, 2014
Dear Residence Hall Association (RHA)
My name is Solomon Delaney and I am the Executive Student Director for The BIG Event. It is with great honor
to recommend Jewel Elliott for the position of RHA president for the 2014-2015 school years. Last year I was the
president for RHA and had the opportunity of witnessing Jewel’s work ethic.
Jewel started off as the president of Kerr Hall and did an amazing job with her residents and exec team. Each
RHA exec oversees a hall council and I was in charge of Kerr hall. It amazed me how Jewel was very efficient when it
came to her hall council. She would meet with her exec team to discuss who’s going to talk about what for their hall
council meeting. This allowed for their hall council meetings to run smoothly also. I also realized the energy that her
exec team would have during their meetings. Residents always enjoyed themselves and I myself looked forward to them.
Jewel did such an exceptional job with her hall council that Kerr Hall won Hall of The Year.
Ms. Elliott was also dedicated to RHA outside of hall council. She attended GAs and was always ready for roll
call. She was also very helpful and willing to assist when it came down to programming. Her energy was always positive
and she never complained.
One thing that stood out to me about Jewel was how she was able to balance RHA, SAA, and being in band. These
particular organizations takes time, but she managed to represent for all three effectively. This year Jewel is the vicepresident for RHA and seems to be doing a great job. Her being vice-presidents makes her a great candidate for next
year president term. Jewel is an all-around leader and RHA need someone like her to help it to continue to grow. Her
energy and enthusiasm is also needed in the organization.
Sincerely,
Solomon Delaney