Resident Appreciation Week celebrates students living in Marshall’s residence halls, the outreach coordinator for the Department of Housing and Residence Life said.

“It was really meant to just have a full week of fun things for our residents, whether that be activities or gifts they pick up at their desks,” Emily Roush said. “It was really designed to make them feel special and appreciated because our residents are the best part of living on campus.”

From Monday through Thursday, Jan. 22-25, residents have the opportunity to attend different events and collect gifts from the Department of Housing and Residence Life. With all of the residence halls participating, Roush highlighted this week as a time to feel the sense of community on campus.

Senior Amanda Lane has lived on campus for the entirety of her college career. As a resident advisor, Lane gets to experience this week from the perspective of both a staff member and resident.

“I think it is a good way to get my residents and other residents out of their dorms,” Lane said, “and, to me, it’s just a way to get them involved and feel a part of Marshall more.” 

To kick off the week, Housing hosted an arrow tag event in the Don Morris Room in the Memorial Student Center on Monday. Lane said she enjoyed watching the competitiveness between the residents who participated.

“All of the residents seemed to have a really good time,” Lane said. “If I wasn’t a senior, I would participate in it again.”

On Tuesday, residents received journaling supplies by the staff of their residence halls. On Wednesday, all students—including commuters—were invited to solve a Clue-themed murder mystery in room BE5 in the Memorial Student Center.

From 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, residents can stop by the Housing and Residence Life office and exchange a shirt from another university for a housing-exclusive shirt. The first 25 residents to arrive will have the option to exchange their shirt for a hoodie.

The housing office will also accept four to five non-perishable food items for those who do not have a shirt from another school. The food will be donated to the Marshall Food Pantry, and the shirts will be given to the City Mission.

“We want all the shirts from other schools off this campus because we are Marshall,” Roush said.

Although the t-shirt exchange is making a comeback for the second annual Resident Appreciation Week, Roush said the other events and gifts are new this year and will continue to differ in the coming years to keep residents engaged.

“For me, this is the most rewarding week of the year,” Roush said. “It’s why we all work here: to do things for students.”

For more information regarding Resident Appreciation Week, students can email [email protected] or visit the housing office in Holderby Hall.