Who's Who in Albany: Joonie Kim

Name: Joonie Kim

Age: 38

Occupation: Residential Services Coordinator at University Village

Do you live in University Village? My husband used to be a student here, so we lived here for about six years. I was working as a resident advisor.

What kinds of programs are offered to residents? We offer events and programs for residents; we have seven regular events per year. We mediate any conflicts that residents have, provide resources, show the apartments to prospective residents. There is a social worker in the Village, to provide services to students, visiting scholars and their families.

I coordinate, hire, do the budget – I do a little bit of everything; my supervisor says I'm the one who glues everything together.

What are your regular events? At the Village Festival and Resource Fair we focus on health and wellness. In October we have our Pumpkin Festival. A lot of residents are from foreign countries, so they are unfamiliar with the pumpkin-carving tradition; we provide the tools and help with carving.

In December we have our Winter Festival. In February we have the Valentine's Festival, with "Valentine-grams": carnations, cards, and chocolate goodies that residents can purchase for others. The resident advisors then knock on doors and deliver the grams.

We have a spring arts festival, where kids and adults display their work. In the spring we also have a Village Fair, and our last event is our ice cream social.

What are your ongoing programs? We have Family Fridays two times a month, with movies and board games. We have a "Mommies and Daddies and Me" program, for parents who are expecting.

There's also the International Tea 'N Talk, which meets on the second and fourth Friday of the month. We've done belly-dancing, gone to the Berkeley Marina on a field trip, and had dim sum organized by a Chinese-American woman. There are a lot of international spouses, and they have to leave their friends and family behind. It's a place for people to come and enjoy friendship.

Any new additions? We're planning a single parents' group; we're currently looking for a person who can facilitate and for funding. We'll have activity times for children who stay at home. We'll also have a brand-new Homework Club.

Is there any one memorable thing from your years as resident advisor? Not from my R.A. years but, as a resident, I remember this one summer we lived on a courtyard where the children played, so we started having a barbecue every Saturday. Thinking back, that kind of community really helped me through the difficult time when we were devoting so much money and time to education. It takes just one step forward; if that person hadn't put out that grill, I wouldn't have had that community. Small acts of leadership give a lot to the community.