Georgetown University resident assistants (RAs) voted in favor of a proposed contract with the university May 9, ratifying the tentative agreement reached with the university after 13 bargaining sessions.
Out of the Georgetown Resident Assistant Coalition’s (GRAC) 169 eligible voters, the 60 members who voted all cast ballots in favor of the contract. GRAC leadership and the university tentatively agreed to the contract April 14 before proposing the contract to the union membership.
Sam Lovell (CAS ’25), one of GRAC’s founders and an RA in Copley Hall, said agreeing to the contract represents a step forward for all RAs on campus.
“It’s really wonderful to be here and to reflect on a project that’s taken a year and a half, and see how far we’ve come,” Lovell told The Hoya. “I know personally some of the challenges that my colleagues experienced for the past two years.”
“I’m really excited about the potential of a future where such issues are no longer a problem, hopefully not only improving what it means to be an RA on this campus so that more people can do it and enjoy doing it,” Lovell added.
The new contract, effective until June 30, 2029, responds to several concerns and initiatives RAs advocated for with their initial vote to unionize. The contract requires an initial stipend of $1,750 per semester before increasing incrementally, a process of automatic hiring for RAs in good standing and new processes for RAs to arbitrate grievances.
A university spokesperson said the university values the RAs’ contributions and faithfully bargained to reach the contract.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement,” the spokesperson wrote to The Hoya. “We are grateful for the leadership and collaboration shown by all parties throughout this process.”
RAs elected Izzy Wagener (SFS ’26), an RA in Kennedy Hall and GRAC’s previous interim vice chairperson, to be the new chairperson of the union.
Wagener said being involved in the bargaining process and establishment of the union has illustrated GRAC’s hard work into securing a contract.
“It’s crazy to see how far our work has come and to see the culmination of it,” Wagener told The Hoya. “We’ve just worked so hard to get to this point.”
According to Lovell, all current and incoming RAs were invited to vote, and only a majority of those who voted needed to approve the contract for it to pass.
When voting to unionize, GRAC accepted representation from Local 153 of the Office of Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU). David Hamer-Hodges, who works for OPEIU Local 153, said the final contract shows the strength of GRAC’s membership.
“That’s a testament to the workers here that have dedicated themselves to it, who have been excellent representatives of the RA cohort,” Hamer-Hodges told The Hoya. “I think this is something to uphold based on the outcome that we got here, which is a strong contract very thoughtfully curated to address the issues of the RA unit here.”
Hamer-Hodges said he hopes the success of Georgetown’s RA union encourages other employees to unionize and advocate for themselves.
“I hope to see this experience of strength in the labor movement going forward when people get to see how unions work and how they can empower themselves through unionization,” Hamer-Hodges said.
In addition to their vote for the contract, RAs elected Isaiah Vasquez (CAS ’27) as GRAC’s vice chairperson and CC Mesa (SFS ’26) to organizing lead. RAs elected three union stewards — Victoria Allen (CAS ’27), Kristen Delancy (CAS ’26) and Anna Holk (CAS ’27).
Wagener said that, though previous leadership in GRAC is graduating, she is thankful for their legacy and looks forward to working with new leadership.
“I think having an entirely new leadership team beside me will bring a lot of opportunities to get new perspectives,” Wagener said. “I will also miss the outgoing seniors and all the people who really helped us get here.”
Going forward, Wagener said GRAC will work to protect the contract and utilize its benefits, such as serving on the new labor management committee to dictate issues regarding RAs and facilitate RA training.
“I’m excited to launch some new initiatives and see how we can really be beneficial to the community in other ways beyond just helping RAs in their workplaces and to serve as a social connector between RAs,” Wagener said.
Lovell said community support has been important in keeping momentum for GRAC, from initially voting to unionize to finalizing the contract.
“We intersected with members of the campus community who aren’t RAs, who stopped by to share their great gratitude for the work that we’re doing here on campus, who expressed support for our RAs here,” Lovell said. “I’m just really proud in retrospect and really grateful for the solidarity that our community has shown.”
