The following individuals have been hired as senior staff for the 2017-2018 school year, according to Chris Haug, residence life.
- Gena McGowan has been hired as hall director of Fields Hall. She has worked as a pastoral minister, a social worker in a homeless shelter, a professional choir manager, and for the last twelve years as principal of an inner city elementary parochial school in Phoenix, Arizona. Since 1999, she has also maintained a part-time private counseling practice and continues to teach as an adjunct professor at two local institutions of higher learning. Gena earned a masters degree in religious education at the University in 1988.
- Jacob Guckenberger will serve as assistant hall director in Villa Maria Hall. He has lived the past three years in Durham, N.C., where he attended Duke Divinity School and received his master’s degree in theological studies. While in North Carolina, Jacob met his wife Kelsey, who has joined him in Portland to live with and serve the students at UP.
- Megan Launceford is the new assistant hall director in Corrado Hall. She graduated from UP in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting, and during her junior and senior years served as an RA in Fields Hall. She is continuing her education at the University by pursuing an MBA while serving as an assistant hall director.
- Shaylene Smith has been hired as assistant hall director at Haggerty and Tyson Halls. She received her bachelor of arts in psychology from Marymount California University, where she worked as an RA for two years, and won her school’s RA of the Year Award. Currently Shaylene is enrolled in the master of arts in higher education student affairs program at UP.
- Sarah Hill will serve as assistant hall director in Shipstad Hall. Sarah graduated from UP with a bachelor of arts in history , and will now pursue a master of arts in higher education and student affairs.
- Keri Donelson has been hired as hall direct0r for Corrado Hall. She served the past two years as assistant hall director. Keri graduated from George Fox University with a degree in communication arts and a minor in business management. During her time as an undergraduate, Keri served as a resident assistant and also worked in the spiritual life department. She will be pursuing a master of arts in higher education and student affairs at the University while serving as hall director.
- James Peña is the new hall director of Schoenfeldt Hall, where he has served as assistant hall director since 2015. He hold a bachelors degree in biology from George Fox University, where he served as a resident assistant for two years and then as an assistant area coordinator the following year. He is enrolled in UP’s new master of arts in higher education and student affairs program, with an expected graduation date of May 2018.
For more information contact residence life at reslife@up.edu.
The Office of Residence Life will be hosting a Campus Resource Fair during their hall staff training in August, and all departments are invited to participate. The Resource Fair will be held on Friday, August 17
All departments that will be sponsoring students to arrive on campus prior to the standard move-in dates (August 24 for new students, August 26 for returning students) are asked to complete a Department Early Arrival Request, according to Jessica Wode, residence life. Templates for making this request were sent via email on June 26; please contact residence life at 
The following awards were presented by Chris Haug, director of residence life, on Monday, May 8, at the Residence Life Staff Appreciation Banquet:
On Tuesday, May 9
If your department will be sponsoring students to remain on campus after the standard move-out dates (May 5 for most students, May 8 for graduating seniors), please complete a Department Late Stay Request form. If your department did not receive a copy of the template for making this request (sent March 13), please contact the Office of Residence Life at 
University community members have an opportunity to tour Lund Family Hall on Thursday, November 10, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. In addition to the main lounge, kitchen, and chapel, some of the students’ rooms will be open for a peek inside. 
Faculty, staff, and neighborhood families are invited to participate in the annual HALLoween trick-or-treating night in selected UP dorms on Monday, October 31, from 5 to 7 p.m. Children through sixth grade can trick-or-treat, a great way to celebrate Halloween in a safe and controlled environment. All children wishing to participate in HALLoween must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Picture ID is required upon check-in for all parents and guardians. There will be one check-in location, under a tent in front of the Chiles Center, and parking in the main lot. Everyone must check in at this location and receive a wristband to gain admittance to the residence halls.
Fields Hall will present its signature event, the annual Trivia Night, a fundraiser for the Holy Cross Missions, on Friday, November 4
Any departments that will be sponsoring students to stay on campus after the traditional halls close on December 16, or to arrive before the halls re-open on January 14, 2017, are asked to complete a Department Extended Stay Request. If your department did not receive a copy of the template for making this request (sent October 19) , please contact the Office of Residence Life at