Residence Hall Association students nominate their advisor for going above and beyond

Students from ASU’s Residence Hall Association celebrated their advisor, Catherine-Ann LaRoche, this summer as she was named advisor of the year by the National Association of College and University Residence Halls. RHA students nominated her for her leadership, inclusivity and support for their student organization’s work enhancing the quality of residence hall life and empowering on-campus students to advocate for themselves and others. 

Each year, one nominated advisor is recognized as the Valerie Averill Advisor of the Year. After going through an extensive series of bidding and student and faculty recommendation, LaRoche, ASU Residence Hall Association advisor and assistant director, was named the awardee at the NACURH annual meeting in June. 

From left: Parker Phillips, Jailene Matrecito, Vincent Gomez, Keziah Ampadu-Siaw and Catherine LaRoche at the NACURH awards

LaRoche began her career in on-campus life as a residence director at Adams State University in Colorado, where she started her own student organization for on-campus residents. Following her start at Adams State, LaRoche accepted a role at ASU as an assistant community director, and in the last few years she has juggled her role with serving as the Barrett Complex assistant director, earning her doctorate in leadership and innovation and volunteering as an RHA advisor. 

“Although advising is not my primary job, it’s often the most rewarding part of my job,” LaRoche said. “Seeing my student leaders grow, learn and accomplish their goals is the best part of advising.”

The bid process for the NACURH Advisor of the Year award was led by those very students. Keziah Ampadu-Siaw, a recent Barrett, the Honors College, graduate who earned her degree in philosophy, said she was proud to have recommended LaRoche for the award. She worked alongside LaRoche for most of her undergraduate student life as well as when she held the role of executive director of RHA.

“Being in RHA for four years, I was able to see firsthand the impact Catherine made through her student leaders. While RHA may not be perfect, we are certainly close to it,” Ampadu-Siaw said. 

“Before ending my term as executive director, I could see the direction the organization was going with the new leadership in place, and it was definitely in a positive direction. And the biggest and most integral influencer of this positive, inclusive and diverse environment established within RHA is Catherine LaRoche.”

Other students like political science sophomore Vincent Gomez, who has known and worked with LaRoche since his freshman year, sees her individuality as an inspiration. 

“She was there every step of my college experience and is a woman of color who is strong and confident in her leadership in higher education. That is empowering to not only myself but many others.”

Having an influence on students’ lives in the way that LaRoche has comes from a strong support system and example. LaRoche cites Tina Horvath, the previous director of residential life at ASU who selected LaRoche as an RHA advisor, as one of her major mentors throughout her career. 

“She has shown me how important it is to advocate for students and yourself, care about the people who work for you and always stay true to your values,” LaRoche said. “She always believes in me and helps me see the good work that I do in student affairs.”

When she was announced as the winner of the award at the NACURH meeting, LaRoche did not even hear her name called because of  her nerves leading up to the deciding moment. She only realized she had won because of how loudly her students, colleagues and regional professionals were cheering for her. LaRoche said she dedicates her win to her cheering section inside and outside of the meeting. 

“It was truly an honor to be awarded advisor of the year in front of about 2,000 students and housing professionals,” LaRoche said. “What makes me most proud about winning this award is the amount of time and effort my students put into bidding for this award. They worked so hard, so it was so amazing to see their hard work pay off with this win.”