Posts Tagged ‘Residence Life’

College Announces Position Realignment, New Hires

The e-mail that went out to students, faculty, and staff today was actually kind of funny to me, considering I was just about to contact Dr. Pastoor about the hiring process for the Assistant Director of Student Activities and Greek Life.  But we all got that information today…and more.

In brief, here’s the entire list of changes and hires:

• The Office of Residence Life is now the Office of the Dean of Students
• Bruce Peterson is now the Dean of Students, and is the go-to if Dr. Pastoor (VP of Student Life) is not around
• Ellen Campbell is now the Assistant Dean of Students
• Leslie Yetter was hired as an Assistant Dean of Students
• Amanda Mullen was hired as a Residence Hall Director, and will work with Yetter
• Erica Knuckles was hired as a Residence Hall Director, and will work with Campbell
• Jason Gepperth was hired as a Residence Hall Director, and will work with Campbell
• Jacob Tidwell was hired as Assistant Director of Student Activities and Greek Life
• Linda See is now working on the Marietta College Parent & Family Organization, no longer responsible for housing coordination
• Chief of Police will be named soon

Obviously, the biggest news is that they found the replacement for the Assistant Director of Student Activities and Greek Life position.  Tidwell is an Eastern Carolina University graduate who has been working for the school.  According to his Facebook profile, he is a brother of Beta Theta Pi, and serves as their chapter advisor.  He has a BS in Business Administration and his MBA.  Tidwell replaces Allison Toney, who resigned in June to take a position at the University of South Carolina.

The new Residence hall Director hires were needed after Tara Kurilchick and Ricky Ciccone departed.  Amanda, Erica, and Jason all have the Masters in Higher Education, and in Leslie’s case, previous Residence Hall Director experience.  The e-mail did not list who was going to be in charge of each Residence Hall for the coming year, but we are working to obtain that information.

The Chief of Police remains MC’s only major hole left to fill.  Dr. Pastoor said that all three candidates have been to Marietta for interviews, and that a decision should be made soon.

Keep with Writing on the Mall as we work through all of these new people.  We are working to try to get them all to introduce themselves through here.

Student Speak Out to Let Students Get it All Out

Tired and frustrated with how things are at Marietta College?  Now’s your chance to have your voice heard and hear from the administrators themselves how your problem can be addressed.

Wednesday, November 18th at 7 PM in the McDonough Auditorium is your chance.  A panel of administrators will hear your problems and respond to them.  The heavy hitters will be there, including President Jean Scott, VP of Administration and Finance Dan Bryant, Director of Dining Services Walter Miller, Director of Career Center Hilles Hughes, Director of Residence Life Bruce Peterson, Director of Athletics Larry Hiser, Director of Physical Plant Fred Smith, Chief Information Officer Administrative Computing John Davis, Director of Student Financial Services Kevin Lamb, Provost and Dean of the College Dr. Rita Kipp, and Chief of Campus Police Dave Valkinburg.

Can’t make it?  No Problem.  Writing on the Mall will take your questions to the meeting and ask them for you!  Just leave a comment here on the blog with your question, or leave a comment on our Facebook page, or tweet at us @writeonthemall.  We’ll take all the questions we receive and report back with the answers.

Off Campus Housing Policies

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Kui Jai (aka Jacky) is a guest writer for Writing on the Mall.  He is involved with the Media Writing Two class at Marietta College, which has been submitting articles to us.  His article is the first of many that you will see hit the site.  If you would like to see more like this, just let us know at patrick_h at writingonthemall dot net.

If you have an option, will you choose to live on campus or not? Apparently, it is a tough question that many students do not know how to answer. Today, let’s focus on different people on campus, and let’s hear the different voices from them.

In Marietta College, all of the undergraduate students are required to live on campus. The requirement of applying for living off campus is extremely strict. “In Marietta College, our students were not allowed to live off campus until living in residence hall for eight semesters or four years,” said Bruce Peterson, the Director of Residence Life in Marietta College. “Other requirement also includes the age limits 23. Basically, the only way that we allow them to live off campus is getting married or having some personal medical problem.”

Read more…

Enhanced Campus Security?

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Ally Janakis is a guest writer for Writing on the Mall.  She is involved with the Media Writing Two class at Marietta College, which has been submitting articles to us.  Her article is the first of many that you will see hit the site.  If you would like to see more like this, just let us know at patrick_h at writingonthemall dot net.

Although we have not progressed to armed guards and watchdogs, Marietta College has made strides in improving security around campus. But are they truly improvements?

The August newsletter sent to students gave an overview of the new security. Parsons Hall, which has been, locked 24/7 for the past two years now also has automatic locks on suite doors and room doors. For Parsons residents living above the first floor entering their room entails swiping their ID card at the door, unlocking their suite door and then unlocking their room door. It also means to use the bathroom in their suite, one must either prop their door or bring their keys.

Junior Jaque Danhires responds negatively to the recent updated security, “I feel protecting the students is very important, but personally as a student who lives in Parsons locking the suite door would have sufficed. I hate going to the bathroom and getting locked out of my room in the middle of the night.”

Another added frustration is that if you lock yourself out more than three times you are fined by Residence Life. Some dorms even require IDs to access the bathroom such as in the Pioneer House.

Read more…

New MC Website Brings New Direction

As in new content that will be updated throughout the year. The new Marietta College website will actually be somewhere that students will want to visit.  The site launched with six feature articles, including the following:

• Events celebrating the 175th anniversary of Marietta College
• A letter from the Student Senate President, Kyle Thauvette
• A connection piece featuring the importance of resident life at MC
• Matriculation piece welcoming the class of 2013
• Feature article on Jim Tracy, manager of the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball
• Pioneer Pride day announcement asking all members of the Long Blue Line to take a picture of themselves in their favorite MC shirt

The idea seems to be to incorporate the past, present, and future all into one nice package.  Visual appearance has improved greatly, with large images and prominently featured 175th anniversary logos.  Content is more easily accessed and easily added/updated.

According to a press release from Tom Perry, the Director of College Relations, we should expect anywhere from 4-8 articles a month, which should keep things fresh and interesting.

As a side note, we have been recognized by the college as a local news outlet, which is a huge step for us.  We will continue to provide a look at Marietta College from the student’s perspective.  Writing on the Mall is still a student owned and operated blog…just expanding our readership and promoting our wears.

Quick Hits: Parking, Lofts, and Air Conditioners

Air Conditioners

Just a reminder that if you are looking to have an air conditioner in your room, the deadline for approval is August 1st.  You can find the form here.  You need a letter from your physician proving that you have a valid excuse to need one, such as allergies, asthma, or many other medical problems.  Air conditioners must be between 6,000 and 8,000 BTU, and have an EEF rating of 8.5 or higher.  Your account will be charged $115 for the added expense of electricity for your room.

Trust me, if your dorm is not air conditioned, and you can get approval to have one, it is worth it.  While this summer may be relatively cool for the area, the Fall could prove to be quite warm.  Also, the Spring can sometimes warm up pretty quickly, so always good to have a cool place to go home to.

Lofting

Also, for those of you looking to build a loft in your room, there’s a form for that also.  You can find it here.  A plan of your loft’s construction must be approved by the Director of Residence Life, then be inspected by Physical Plant upon completion.  The form must be turned in, and then you’re good to go.

The big thing to remember with lofts is that the wood must be coated or dipped with a flame retardant, and that the loft has to be no more than 38 inches off the ceiling.  Full requirements are included in the provided link.

Parking

If you’re bringing a car to campus and are an upperclassmen, remember to use the Park Admin system to purchase your parking pass for the 09-10 school year.  The price is the same as always, at $45, and is good through the end of the Spring semester of 2010.

Freshmen have a lot of restrictions to fight through to get a parking pass now, and have already jumped through all the hoops to get one by now.  You can’t get a freshman parking pass through the Park Admin system, so contact CPS if you’re curious to see if you qualify and if there are any passes still available.

Break Housing Applications Should Start Soon

If you’re looking to apply to live on campus over Spring Break, the Residence Life Office should start accepting applications soon.

The fee to live on campus is $85 a week, so Spring Break should cost you that much.  Applications should begin to be accepted the 27th of February through Noon on March 5th or 6th.

Room Selection Process Begins

It’s that time of year again…the time to select your living arrangements for the 2009-2010 school year.

Information Sessions begin on the 23rd of February for current Freshmen.  If you’re planning to live off campus, that deadling is March 2nd.  Applications are available at the Residence Life Office (1st Floor of Andrews).  Pre-Registration fees are due on March 6th, and are $200 this year.  Applications for Glendale and Fayerweather are due on March 16th.

Check out the complete list of deadlines and info sessions after the jump, along with links to applications for living off campus, in campus apartments, or in Fayerweather.

Read more…