Residence Don

Queen’s University; Kingston; Hybrid; CAD 50,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada, seeks a Residence Don for the 2026-2027 academic year. The role delivers front-line support to residence students, maintains weekly office hours, and fosters an inclusive community aligned with the Residence Life goals.

You will collaborate with staff, handle campus referrals, and support safety, programming, and conduct processes. Responsibilities span leadership, residence operations, education, conduct, and administration, with required training and

Qualifications

• Experience in residence life or student services (preferred).
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.

Responsibilities

• Maintain a visible, approachable presence as first point of contact for residents.
• Manage front-line on-call duties and document incidents.
• Foster inclusive and respectful community environments.
• Coordinate with Residence Life staff and university partners.
• Support program planning, training and evaluations as directed.

Job description

Job description for the 2026-2027 academic year

Within Housing and Ancillary Services (Department of Student Affairs), Residence Life and Services aims to create a community environment where all students can:

• Find a sense of belonging: we help students feel connected at Queen’s and provide opportunities for active engagement within the campus and Kingston communities;
• Build resilience: we encourage students to problem solve, think critically, accept responsibility for one’s actions, and learn and grow from challenging experiences;
• Achieve academic success: we help students identify and strive to achieve realistic and tangible goals that contribute to their overall academic efforts.

We encourage the personal development of our community members by fostering connection, providing a wide range of educational and academic programming, and holding individuals accountable for violations of the Residence Contract.

The contract for 2026-27 begins Monday August 24, 2026 (first day of staff training), and ends on Friday, April 30, 2027 (subject to change based on alignment with sessional dates). Employees must be able to commit for the entirety of the contract, regardless of having completed previous elements of the role (including training). The contract is inclusive of the entire academic year, including all statutory holidays and Reading Weeks (except the December University closure).

The Residence Don is a front-line resource for residence students and is responsible for the overall implementation of the three Residence Life learning goals: finding a sense of belonging, building resilience, and achieving academic success. Overall, the Don will:

• Establish a visible, available, and approachable presence as a first point of contact for residence students.
• Build rapport and 1:1 relationships with each student in the community.
• Demonstrate and support attitudes and behaviours related to promoting a community and campus that is respectful of diverse identities and backgrounds, and free from harassment, discrimination, and intimidation.
• Contribute to building safety and security through maintaining on-call and office hours.
• Act as a positive role model for residence students, fellow student staff members, and within the broader campus community.
• Facilitate informed and specific referrals to campus resources.
• Build community in area(s) of responsibility where students feel respected and connected to each other.
• Develop positive working relationships with fellow student staff members, Housing and Ancillary Services staff, and other University partners and colleagues.
• Work within University policies and take direction, as necessary, from Residence Life professional staff.

Key Responsibilities

Community Leadership

• Maintain regular weekly office hours from 8 pm-11 pm
  • Be available and visible in assigned community with door open.
  • Address individual, community, and conduct issues as needed.
  • Time can be spent hosting drop-in hours for community, having intentional conversations, conducting community rounds, completing administrative tasks, and/or facilitating programming requirements.
• Communicate all facility concerns and damages via the ARCHIBUS MRO system, and escape to RLC if ongoing/safety concern.
• Establish 1:1 rapport with each resident in the area of responsibility.
• Develop and implement a communication protocol to ensure residents are informed of information and events.
• Eat in the residence dining halls with residents regularly throughout the academic year.
• Make an effort to get to know residents in other areas of the building.
• Role model and promote inclusive and respectful behavior in area(s) of responsibility.
• Arrange follow-up conversations with students after notable interactions, as directed by Residence Life professional staff.
• Make appropriate, timely, and informed referrals to campus resources.

Residence Operations

• Participate in a front-line on-call rotation:
  • Complete regular rounds of area(s) of responsibility.
  • Respond and document violations of the Residence Contract in accordance with University policy, including: noise, alcohol and cannabis related incidents, inappropriate behaviour, and smoking.
  • Respond and document emergency and crisis situations in accordance with University policy, including: suicidal ideation, sexual violence, student support (first aid, substance use), power outage, natural disaster (fire, flood, etc.).
  • Document and report facilities issues (including damages).
  • Submit end-of-shift reports after each shift.
• Assist in handling emergencies in partnership with other residence staff, Campus Security and Emergency Services, and/or other campus partners as applicable.
• Assist in the student staff recruitment and selection process as directed.
• Assist with end-of-term room checks in December and April.
• Develop positive working relationships with fellow staff members, including Custodial, Front Desk, and Hospitality staff.

Residence Education

• Implement and attend educational and programming initiatives from the Residence Education team, as directed in the Residence Staff Manual.
• Facilitate monthly community meetings.
• Plan, promote, and facilitate informal community building events.
• Keep posters and information updated in area(s) of responsibility.
• Attend all required staff training and development sessions, including August training per the contract and ongoing training throughout the academic year.
• Attend ongoing training sessions related to furthering knowledge of issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Residence Conduct

• Document violations of the Residence Contract.
• Have educational conversations with residents regarding behaviour and policies.
• Ensure that the Residence Contract are maintained, including conducting front-line intervention and reporting incidents through the appropriate channel(s).
• Where possible, and when requested, attend Residence Conduct Appeal hearings.

Administration

• Ensure community completion of student surveys and feedback processes (Residence Satisfaction Survey, focus groups, program assessment, etc.).
• Read and be familiar with the information included in the Residence Staff Manual, Residence Contract, residence policies, and any other material distributed by Residence Life and Services.
• Attend weekly staff meetings, and bi-weekly one-on-one meetings with the Residence Life Coordinator.
• Use the Residence Life database (eRezlife) to thoroughly document work, including submitting individual reports concerning incidents or student interactions.
• Check and action email and voicemail messages daily.

Additional Duties

• Support and assist in coordinating efforts to ensure building safety, security and maintenance in the event of a work stoppage.
• Perform additional duties as directed by Residence Life professional staff.

Sample Schedule

Hours of work are outlined in Article 20 - Hours Of Work, Mandatory Training, And Schedules of the Collective Agreement between Queen’s University and USW 2010-02 on Unions and Associations on the Queen’s Human Resources website . Hours of work may be uneven and will be influenced by student concerns and Residence Life priorities, however it is expected that the bulk of the weekly requirements will be completed during Don office hours. Given the time commitment, additional employment and extracurricular activities are limited to a maximum of 10 hours per week.

Week Day Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Week 1 On-call Shift 8 pm-7 am

Office Hours 8 pm-11 pm

Community Meeting 8 pm

Drop-in Hours 9 pm-11 pm

Staff Meeting 10 pm-11 pm Program attendance 2 pm-4 pm: Residence-wide program (bring your community)

Office Hours 8 pm-11 pm

Community Socials 8 pm

Student drop-in time/Don administrative time 9:30 pm-11 pm

Week 2 Office Hours 8 pm-11 pm On-call Shift 8 pm-7 am Staff Meeting 10 pm-11 pm 1:1 with RLC 4 pm-4:30 pm On-call Shift 8 pm-7 am

Professional Skills

The Department of Student Affairs has developed a competency framework to help students maximize on-campus opportunities. Residence Life participates in the Experiential Learning Wraparound , which is a professional development structure built around competencies and reflection in an experiential framework. Dons have the opportunity to set and monitor goals while in the role, and through the EL Wraparound framework will end their contract with valuable skills and language to translate into future roles. Successful candidates will demonstrate capacity in these areas at the time of hire, and a commitment to developing their professional skills further during their contract.

Leadership & Initiative

Communicates vision, and tasks clearly & authentically; Values, considers and supports differences; Assesses efficiency and proactively leads solutions and new projects.

Organization, Time & Project Management

Plans and manages time and resources to achieve goals; Defines objectives, selects priorities, manages workload and delegates when required.

Expresses ideas clearly and convincingly using a variety of verbal and non-verbal methods appropriate to audience; Actively listens to understand.

Attention to Detail

Completes tasks with accuracy, diligence and care; Clearly follows procedures; Locates gathers and organizes data effectively.

Self-Management

Manages and evaluates own learning, behaviour, well-being and values while practicing ethical decision-making.

Changes approach in new situations; Open and responds constructively to feedback; Learns from mistakes; Copes with uncertainty.

Makes meaningful contributions in a group environment; Understands group dynamics and respects and values diversity of perspectives in interactions.

Fostering Inclusion

Seeks perspectives of diverse voices; Identifies and addresses systemic barriers to inclusion and access in their work.

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

Analyses root cause of problems; Identifies and evaluates strengths and weaknesses of arguments, beliefs and assumptions in complex situations).

Intercultural Competence

Reflects on personal identity, prejudices and biases; Seeks to understand different cultures; Builds multiple cultural frameworks, values and norms.