Apply to be Your House or Yard Rep!

We're now accepting applications for the 2008-2009 school year!! There are still positions open for one Cabot Rep and three Yard Reps!

Are you outgoing, creative, and interested in environmental issues?  Do you have what it takes to change Harvard's culture?   Hoping to strengthen your house/Yard community, while also getting to know the Harvard ropes on your own?  Looking for a 4 hour/week part-time job?  Want to gain leadership skills and build your resume?  Then consider applying to be a Resource Efficiency Program Representative! Read further to review a Rep job description, learn how to apply to be a Rep, and get a sense of the quailities of the ideal Rep candidate.

Do it for the environment, do it for the people, do it for your children, do it for Harvard, do it because you care ... just do it!

Job Description

Resource Efficiency Program Representative, Harvard Green Campus Initiative (HGCI)

Location

On campus, primarily in your House or the Yard

Pay

$11 an hour.

Hours 

4 hours per week for approximately 11 weeks per semester, including required meetings.   Optional (unpaid) field trips and development opportunities.

The Position

The Resource Efficiency Program (REP) is going into its sixth year and is seeking College students who are enthusiastic about promoting recycling and energy/water conservation in Houses and Yard dorms.

  • Work with the people who make the decisions about resource use on campus!
  • Collaborate with a fantastic team of fellow students!
  • Make Harvard a more sustainable and environmentally- friendly campus!

You will receive extensive resources and support from the two student program captains, the program coordinator, our administrative partners, and your team of Reps from nearby dorms. Yard Reps will work as a team with the help of entryway volunteers to reach the entire Yard population.

Your job will involve weekly educational campaigns for your peers as well as acting as a liason between students and administrators about sustainability, comfort, health, and efficiency issues.  Reps teach their peers why and how to conserve energy, water, and materials. . Reps creatively convey information via posters, art displays, skits, conversations, and more, with emphasis on providing factual information on consumption that is vivid and close-to-home. 

How to Apply

Four Easy Steps:

(1) Prepare a letter explaining your qualifications and why you want to be the Rep for your House or one of 4 Yard Reps. Include the following:

  • Two projects that you would like to work on to make Harvard more sustainable

    • House- or dorm-based projects are preferred
      • Example projects might be developing a digital environmental newsletter to be sent out over house lists, or a specific infrastructural change at Harvard, or a campaign to encourage a particular behavioral change in your peers.
  • Experiences and leadership roles you will bring to REP

(2) Attach your resume or prepare one. Be sure it includes your year, concentration, dorm, and contact information. (Note: Resumes are optional for freshmen, though you should at least try to list some personal achievements you are proud of.)

(3) Save letter and resume as one Word document entitled "[Your house] REP App [your name]" (ex. "Quincy REP App Allison Rogers.doc")

(4) Send the document via email to REPcaptains@gmail.com, with subject "[Your house] REP App [your name]".

Your application will be read by the REP captains and the REP coordinator.

Questions: If you have any questions, or cannot commit to 4 hours/week but would like to volunteer for the Resource Efficiency Program, please contact us.

Interviews

We try to interview all candidates who meet our requirements and apply before the deadline.

The Ideal Candidate

Personal Qualities

  • Interested in making dorms more resource efficient. Interested in learning about environmental issues and social marketing.
  • Kind, friendly, creative, fun to work with.
  • Proactive, independent, good time manager, reliable.
  • Passionate, committed, willing to go the extra mile.
  • Comfortable interacting with dorm residents, administrators, and staff.
  • Happy to be a visible personality or act silly to get your message across.

Availability

  • Prioritizes participation in REP events, including regularly scheduled group meetings (every two weeks, likely to be evening meetings).
  • Available on additional evenings each semester to help plan at least one of the biweekly meetings and prepare campaign materials for one of the biweekly campaigns.
  • Available for group project on the Friday nearest Veterans' Day, and at Earth Day (tentatively scheduled for Sat, April 19th). Available for several group worksessions during the year (e.g., preparation for Earth Day, supporting a fellow Rep's studybreak, staffing Mt. Trashmore).

Written work

  • Reads and responds to time-sensitive e-mails ASAP during the year.
  • Comfortable using up-to-date, PC-compatible versions of Microsoft Word and Excel (available in computer labs).
  • Committed to completing written reports fully and on time.

Residency Requirements

  • Resident of House/Yard represented.
  • Committed to this position for both fall and spring semesters. (Contact us if you are considering study abroad/leave for a semester.)