Residential Education

The Residential Education team consists of our House Advisors, Assistant Directors, and Director of Residential Education who are all live-in professional administrators dedicated to building a safe and welcoming community within each of our Houses. House Advisors work closely with their House Team, comprised of several student leaders, to find ways to encourage student’s learning and development outside the classroom.

The House Team

House Advisors act as liaisons between the Office of Residential Life and the Houses. House Advisors supervise Student Fellows, House Student Advisors, and the House President, and serve as an ongoing resource to other all House Team members. Each House Advisor is responsible for one to two houses: overseeing the building management, ensuring the security and wellbeing of the students, and providing social/cultural/educational programming within the House.

House Fellows are faculty members who live with their families in apartments within the houses. House Fellows help to create a sense of community in the house, hosting study-breaks and other events and providing informal advising to the students in their house.

Student Fellows are upperclassmen, usually second-year students, who have been trained to provide peer mentorship for new students. Each Student Fellow is assigned to a group of incoming first-year and or transfer students who live in the same hall. Student Fellows are familiar with campus resources, and are trained to support new students with the social and academic problems frequently encountered during their first year at Vassar.

Community Fellows are upperclassmen, who have been trained to provide peer mentorship for their fellow returning students. Each Community Fellow is assigned to a group of returning students who live on the same floor. Community Fellows are familiar with campus resources, and are trained to support their peers with the social and academic problems that can occur during their time at Vassar.

House Student Advisors, usually third-year students, provide ongoing guidance and mentorship for the members of House Team after having served on House Team previously. House Student Advisors work closely with the House Advisor and House Event Office to support the House Team in all areas. 

House Fellow Interns, paired with the House Fellows, serve as academic resources and aim to create opportunities for intellectual discourse (often over food) through programming both inside and outside the House.

House Presidents, elected to the House Team by the members of the house, serve to support students in the house. They are co-leaders of house team weekly meetings and also serve as a voice for students with VSA.

House Vice Presidents, elected to the House Team by the members of the house, help manage the house budget, and support House Presidents in advocating the house.

First-Year Representatives, elected to the House Team by the members of the house, are the first-year student voice within their house as a member of house team.

What is H.O.M.E.?

H.O.M.E. is a holistic residential curriculum supported by the mission of the Office of Residential Life that facilitates creative programming, leverages campus partnerships, and promotes intentional opportunities for students’ engagement with their house, Vassar College, and the larger community. 

H.O.M.E. supports Residential Students’ growth outside of the classroom and fosters an environment of belonging. It encompasses Vassar traditions and allows students to shape their own residential experience, as well as those of their peers, as part of their daily lives.

What does it stand for?

Helpful Skills - Students are encouraged to learn and develop new practices that will serve their lives beyond Vassar College and expand their transferable skills.

Open Dialogue - Students are involved in conversations meant to expand their worldview through sharing their experiences through storytelling and developing active listening skills

Mindfulness - Students are provided with opportunities to learn about the many aspects of holistic well-being and incorporate tools to maintain healthy practices.

Engagement - Students are actively involved in adding their own perspective to Vassar College through participation in traditions, finding and deepening their own passions, and contributing to the campus community. 

What will this look like?

Each month has a different programmatic theme. House Team Events, SF/CF Circles, Signature Events (led by Campus Partners & Res Life), and Vassar Public Events will highlight the theme of each month. 

The themes are as follows:

• September = Connections
• November = Identity Development
• January = Envisioning
• March = Service and Sustainability
• May = Traditions
• October = Balance
• December = Reflections
• February = Wellness
• April = Gratitude

Brewer Bucks

Brewer Bucks are the currency students earn by attending H.O.M.E. events. This currency can be spent at the end of the semester at the Brewer Bucks auction!