RA Spotlight: Brandon Dela Cruz ’22

Meet Brandon Dela Cruz ’22, a first-time RA for Edward S. Ageno Hall West, better known as Ageno West, and senior majoring in Justice, Community, and Leadership with a double minor in Law and Society and English. 

“An RA is an individual who is supposed to really showcase what Saint Mary’s is, especially in the living situations,” said Dela Cruz. “I feel like it’s a great place for us to build a community and foster that community, especially when people are moving back and moving away from home. I think it’s very important for the RA to create a space, to make a home away from home.”

As an RA for Ageno West, a townhouse-style residence hall at the top of the canyon area, Dela Cruz creates a safe and welcoming environment for third- and fourth-year Saint Mary’s students. “I think in regards to us being juniors and seniors up here, it’s definitely interesting and unique because we’re starting to transition out of Saint Mary’s. So, I really like to tailor the events toward us transitioning out [of college] and really honing in on us graduating pretty soon, as opposed to first-year hall RAs, where they’re just barely starting. So, it’s definitely unique here.”

In addition to his RA responsibilities, Dela Cruz stays involved at Saint Mary’s and credits Saint Mary’s RA program for helping him develop time management skills. “I feel like a lot of the Resident Advisors here at Saint Mary’s are so involved with the school, not only with academics but also extracurriculars, and I’m the same way. So, the Resident Advisor position has really taught me to prioritize and adapt to different situations and focus on that.”

Dela Cruz said he chose to become an RA because he wanted to create the same welcoming environment that others made for him at Saint Mary’s. 

“My first year, I lived on campus, and my Resident Advisor actually made a huge impact on me. I can see that he was very inspirational in the sense that he told me to get out and get active, and get involved with the school,” shared Dela Cruz. “I wanted that same impact for some of the students here. In Ageno West, there are mainly juniors and seniors, but we do have some transfers coming in, and this is their first time being on campus. So, I wanted to make that similar impact as well.”

To learn more about living on campus, visit the Student Life website.