The Pass-Down Dinner is an effective way to make the end of year transition with staff.
At Sarah Lawrence College, the Residence Life staff totals about 40. In early May we hold our annual pass-down dinner.
On this night, the new staff members are informed of their housing placements. We then have a more formal dinner where the outgoing staff “passes down” some wisdom (and a trinket) from their hall to the incoming staff person. We also celebrate our graduates and present them with lapel pins and graduation chords.
These ideas can easily be adapted to other staffs and institutions.
Submitted by Carolyn O’Laughlin, Director of Residence Life, Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, New York