The Cougar's Byte

Issue date: 9/24/07 Section: Features

Last week you were introduced to The Guide and learned how it affects you as a student. If you missed last week's issue, The Guide is a comprehensive booklet which is an examination of campus life and public safety at the University is addressed. This week, since all those students who live on campus are probably still getting adjusted to their living arrangements, we want to concentrate on campus living and see if you know all that you think you may know. Campus Living: What's It All About? is a section in The Guide on pages. 8-11.


Resident students might think they already know everything about campus, but how many of you know the roommate bill of rights, or that resident students are statistically more likely to achieve higher GPA's than commuters and complete their degree in four years? The Guide has all of that information and more about Campus Living. Factors which lead to a successful college experience is accessibility, personal development, and exploring diversity. Living on campus is a privilege, and plenty of students who would love the chance to live on campus will tell you that. Sometimes we take things, such as safety, for granted. To ensure a safe environment, we should develop habits to maintain safety. Some tips in The Guide include preventing unknown people from entering buildings, locking all doors, alerting the proper people if there is a violation and abiding by procedures. You may be thinking all of this is a given, but unfortunately incidents happen when people do not follow the expected behavior policies.

Ensuring safety also indicates ensuring trust. Once someone trusts, they begin to respect the rules. To make sure Residence Life is safe there are fire precautions taken every year. These precautions include mandatory fire training for Residence Life Staff and making sure they understand fire procedures and how to use fire extinguishers. Fire safety is not the only thing Residence Life staff is informed about. There are also other issues which may arise in the residential living setting they must be prepared for. Staff workers go through a rigorous but well needed training sessions to make sure that they can be trusted by residents to provide for accurate information and directions.

Mentioned within The Guide are the Roommate Bill of Rights. These rights are things you automatically agree to by becoming a resident. Things expected of you include undisturbed study time, respect for belongings, personal privacy, and freedom from physical and emotional assault, just to name a few. For a complete list you can look online.

Campus Living is also meant to be educational. Here at Kean University, throughout the year there are several awareness and recreational programs presented for residents. The reason for programming is due to the fact the Office of Residence Life realizes students who live on campus become part of a community. By creating informative programs for students, residents will have a better understanding of their place in the Kean community.

Now that you know a little bit about what is expected of you for campus living, be prepared for next week's Guide excerpt where The Cougar's Byte talks about the Drug and Alcohol Policy Statement Kean University upholds. As always, if you just can't wait until next week you can view The Guide online at www.kean.edu/publications/TheGuideFall2006.pdf or visit the Office of Student Conduct for more information.

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