Set a consistent day, time, and location for your organization's meetings to help members plan their attendance in advance. Depending on your RSO mission and structure, some meetings may be only for RSO Officers and some may be open to all members.

RSOs can enter the Driscoll & Community Commons space lottery for first access to prime meeting locations in the Driscoll and Community Commons buildings. The space lottery information goes out between weeks 5-9 of Fall quarter (to schedule Winter & Spring meetings) and weeks 5-9 of Spring quarter (to schedule Fall meetings).

The meeting organizer should create an agenda before the meeting and share it with all members. Encourage members to add agenda items ahead of time.

A typical agenda should cover welcome and introductions, old business, new business, committee reports, and announcements.

For some meetings your RSO may also want to include:

• Team building or Ice Breaker activities.

• Guest speakers/presentations from campus partners or important resources

• Updates from your faculty/staff advisor

Appoint a member or officer to record meeting minutes, documenting decisions, action items, and responsibilities. These meeting minutes should then be shared with all members shortly after the meeting to keep everyone informed and accountable.

Copies of meeting minutes can be uploaded to the "Files" section of the RSO page on CrimsonConnect. You can learn more about this tool at: https://help.campusgroups.com/en/articles/1105807-uploading-and-sharing-a-document

Assign responsibilities to specific individuals and set deadlines for completing action items discussed during the meeting and encourage members to update the group on their progress during subsequent meetings.

CrimsonConnect has an email tool built in for RSOs to build and send regular newsletters to RSO members. There is also an ability to further specify the audience for an email, if for example, you wish to communicate only with RSO officers, or with RSO members, or with all members & contacts.

One of the great features of CrimsonConnect is the ability to build a public-facing website for your organization with dynamic "drag-and-drop" editing tools. This website can pull information from your group page on CrimsonConnect to feature your upcoming events, officer points of contact, and more.

Each CrimsonConnect Group Page also has a Communication Channel Feed (Discussion Board) that can be used for chat discussions within the RSO. These may be public to other students visiting the group page.

Encourage open communication among all members of the organization. Create an atmosphere where everyone feels comfortable expressing their opinions, concerns, and ideas. When conflicts arise, encourage the involved parties to talk directly with each other to understand each other's perspectives. Emphasize active listening and respect for different viewpoints, as it is the foundation for effective conflict resolution.

It may be worth setting some internal community guidelines at the beginning of the year to establish these kinds of norms for your meetings and events.

If conflicts do come up here are some strategies to consider:

• MEDIATION: Designate a neutral member or advisor to mediate conflicts between individuals. Mediation allows for a structured and impartial conversation, facilitating understanding and finding common ground. Advisors can provide guidance and a different perspective, drawing from their experience and knowledge of the university's policies.

• CONFLICT RESOLUTION WORKSHOPS: Organize workshops or training sessions for members to learn about conflict resolution techniques and effective communication skills. These workshops can improve members' ability to handle conflicts constructively.

• ESTABLISH CONFLICT RESOLUTION PROCEDURES IN RSO CONSTITUTION: Create a clear process for addressing formal complaints or grievances within the organization. This could involve establishing a grievance committee that handles complaints according to predetermined guidelines. Be sure that these procedures do not supersede any existing University Procedures for handling concerns related to violations of the Honor Code.

Incorporate team-building activities into the RSO's schedule regularly. These activities foster camaraderie, trust, and cooperation among members. A strong team that knows and trusts each other is better equipped to navigate challenges together.

• The Student Engagement Team can offer support and guidance on resolving conflicts within student organizations. They can also provide information on university policies and procedures and support an RSO in developing internal procedures that can be incorporated into the RSO constitution.

• The University Ombuds at DU provides a confidential, neutral counsel, wisdom, and direction to faculty, students and staff at DU who are working to resolve on-campus-related problems and conflicts not subject to other dispute resolution processes. The Ombuds may also be a useful guest to invite to an RSO meeting to lead a conversation about conflict resolution and mediation.

For additional resources for reporting more serious concerns or concerns related to discrimination, harassment, or interpersonal violence, please refer to this website: https://www.du.edu/equalopportunity/reporting-resources

Remember, addressing conflicts and challenges within the organization in a positive and proactive manner not only strengthens the group but also contributes to the personal growth and development of its members. By fostering a culture of open communication, mutual respect, and utilizing available university resources, student organizations can thrive even in the face of difficulties.

Whether it's during our regular meetings, events, or through digital platforms, highlighting outstanding achievements of your RSO or RSO members is great! The Student Engagement Team will share these kudos publicly in the RSO Officer Newsletter or the Pulse. You can submit an RSO Spotlight using this link: https://cglink.me/2fC/s81136

The University hosts the Crimson & Gold Awards Celebration near the end of Spring Quarter each year. Nominations for Outstanding Student Organization and Outstanding Student Organization Advisor can be made by anyone. Keep an eye out for Crimson & Gold Award submissions which usually open up in early May.

Community + Values (C+V) manages the You Rock awards. Any DU faculty, staff or student can nominate a fellow member of the DU Community at any point in the year with this online form: https://www.du.edu/community-values/cv-you-rock-awards