"I Am Here"

Every single semester we hear stories of students who find their classes dropped because they forgot to do "I Am Here." Sometimes we even hear of students who get withdrawn from the University or find their Housing about to be revoked because of a failure to do "I Am Here." Therefore, we thought it would be a good idea to put a reminder on the blog that "I Am Here" starts on Friday, December 26, 2008 at 8:00 AM and must be completed by Monday, January 5, 2009 at 4:00 PM. "I Am Here" takes place on the myNEU Portal.

Blanket Music Licensing for College Campuses

Having seen music programs like Ruckus rejected by college campuses, lawsuits thrown out of court by numerous judges, and institutions rejecting the tactic of settlement letters or even storing IP address records, Warner Music Group is now looking into a concept known as "voluntary blanket licensing," where college and universities would collect money from students and then pass it onto the recording industry. Warner Music claims that, "this is exactly the type of solution that several universities and their associations have been asking for," but skeptics compare "voluntary blanket licensing" to a taxation on students, whether they download music or not.

Finals & Bad Weather, Part II

To followup on yesterday's blog post, if you need to stay in the residence halls an extra day due to the bad weather, you can contact your Resident Director (RD) to make arrangements. Additionally, Stetson Hall East dining hall will be open until 7:00 PM tonight as will the Curry Student Center Food Court per the NU Alert that went out this morning.

Finals & Bad Weather

What happens if Final Exams get cancelled tomorrow due to bad weather? With a major snowstorm coming into town and the worst weather expected from 1 PM onward, there is a chance that afternoon exams might be cancelled. The NUAlert system will help notify students, faculty, and staff of a closing as will the Northeastern website and local media. Should exams be cancelled, they would be held on Monday.

But what happens to students who have to leave their residence hall because it's closing? Or students who had planned to leave town and can't because the inclement weather causes massive cancellations and delays at the airports, delays and cancellations with Amtrak, and delays and cancelations at the bus terminal? That's up in the air, but RSA is working to find answers.

No Rush with Laundry Bucks...

There's no need to rush to use up all your Laundry Bucks! Over the weekend, the Housing Services Committee heard that students were trying to get rid of their Laundry Bucks before the end of finals when they would expire -- however, this is not necessary! Laundry Bucks will rollover semester-to-semester, expiring at the end of the Northeastern University fiscal year (end of Summer I.) If you still have Laundry Bucks left, you'll find them there in the Spring with an additional $45 added on.

A To Do List for The Winter Break

The Housing Services Committee wants to give you a quick "To Do" list before you head off for vacation, the Holidays, or just a break:

• Secure Valuables: Thieves love the Holiday season because people are away and it ends up being easier for them to commit theft. Take valuables with you, lock them up, or otherwise secure them.
• Close & Lock Windows: Not only does securing your windows help deter theft, but it also ensures that if we have a cold snap you won't end up with a frozen pipe bursting and soaking your room.
• Turn Down The Thermostat: Set your thermostat as low as it can go. No one will be around, so no one will be there to feel cold. You'll also save Northeastern money, which means there won't be as big a need to raise housing or tuition next year.
• Throw out the Trash: Throw your trash out before you go to help avoid pests and foul odors.
• Clean out the Fridge: Get rid of anything that will expire over break. Also, if you clear out your entire fridge you may be able to unplug it saving more energy.
• Turn Off / Unplug Electronics: Since you won't be around to use it, there's no need to leave it on or running. You'll save energy, save money, and help your fellow students avoid higher costs.

Profile of Today's College Student

Each year the National Association of Student Affairs Professionals does a survey to get a profile of college students. They call the results the "Profile of Today's College Student" and the 2008 results are now out and can be seen here. For us in the Housing Services Committee, this data helps us better know who we're advocating for in the residence halls.

Footloose Is Coming to Campus

The latest press release to come to the Housing Services Committee is about a musical taking place on December 12th and 13th in the Fenway Center. See below for details:

December 2, 2008- Kick off your Sunday shoes Northeastern! The Great White Way, Northeastern University's student directed musical theater group presents Footloose December 12th and 13th at 7:30 pm in the Fenway Center located on St. Stephen’s street.

Footloose written by Dean Pitchford with lyrics by Tom Snow is a musical based on a movie of the same name. The musical follows the story of the main character Ren as he moves from Chicago to a small town named Bomont where dancing is outlawed. The musical includes a host of popular 80's hits including the title song "Footloose," the upbeat "Let's Hear it for the Boy," and the powerful "I need a Hero." Footloose is directed by Peter Karpathakis with Katie Fulton from NuDANCO as the choreographer. The Great White Way held auditions for the musical in September and has been working with the cast of 35 since then. Prior productions include Once Upon a Mattress and Urinetown: the Musical.

Tickets are on sale at the Northeastern box office and must be purchased at the box office before the show. $5 with NU ID, $10 without.

Lance Bass On-Campus Wednesday

For just $10 you could have the opportunity to see former N'Sync pop star Lance Bass right here at Northeastern University. Tomorrow at 7:00 PM in Blackman Auditorium, Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority is presenting Lass Bass. Bass will be speaking "candidly about his childhood, his astonishing experiences growing up in one of the biggest bands in the world, his shock and frustration at the band's eventual dissolution, and his subsequent career, including his four months in Russia, training to become a cosmonaut." Bass will also be discussing life as a homosexual. ASL interpretation will be provided and a book signing will take place after the event for Bass' book Out of Sync. Tickets are on sale at the Blackman Box office, limit 2 per Northeastern University Husky Card.

What's the Higher Education Price Index?

The Higher Education Price Index is something that comes up when talking about costs in the world of higher education. The index is similar to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) which is commonly used to gauge rising (or declining) costs of living and inflation, but geared towards colleges and universities. As a result, the HEPI comes into consideration when there is an evaluation of tuition, housing, and fee increases at Northeastern. Similar to the CPI, which is calculated by the United States Department of Labor - Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Higher Education Price Index (HEPI) has been calculated by Commonfund since 2005.

The change to the HEPI historically has been higher than that of the CPI. However, this year the HEPI rose 3.6% while the CPI rose 3.7%. In the current tough economic times with worries of deflation, it will be interesting to see what the next set of numbers are.

Happy Thanksgiving

The Housing Services Committee wishes a Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Thanksgiving Airport Shuttle Service Idea

In the Housing Services Committee we like to keep abreast of the going-ons at other institutions of higher learning, especially those with Residence Hall Associations and a residential community like Northeastern. One of the institutions that came across our radar this week was the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. At the University of Maryland, the RHA worked to create a shuttle service to bring students from campus to the airport on the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Like Northeastern University, the University of Maryland has public transportation access to its local airport, but the shuttle option provides an easier route of travel for students with luggage. The cost there was only $1,400 for the two days of service. You can read more from The Diamondback.

At Northeastern University, such a service could be a possibility prior to Thanksgiving 2009. The Resident Student Association is going to be researching and investigating the possibility to see if it would be a worthwhile service for the residents.

Gunshot Detection System In Testing at Johns Hopkins University

Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland this week tested a gunshot detection system on its campus which can alert campus and city police to the location of gunfire. The system will help police make faster responses to gunfire, and works through the installation of detector boxes on streetlights, buildings, and other fixed locations. The system has been used in other areas, such as part of Washington, D.C. and was developed by a firm in Virginia. Testing was conducted by police officers firing rounds into sand.

Baltimore suffers from the second highest murder rate in the country (Detriot is #1) with a murder rate higher than that of Los Angeles, New York, and Boston combined. Nevertheless, as technology costs come down this is a technology we could see in Boston one day, perhaps even at Northeastern.

Laundry Bucks Rollover

Hello Residents! I have exciting news!! Laundry Bucks will now roll-over from semester to semester until the end of NU's fiscal year (which is at the end of Summer I).

What this means is that any Laundry Bucks that you have left-over at the end of a semester starting with Summer II (or July) will stay with you until the end of Summer I (or June).

Building K Halted...

You may have read confirmation that Building K plans were halted today in the news. We heard rumor of this last month, and now that it is confirmed we'll be having some discussions with University administration and discussing the matter in Housing Services Committee tonight in 450B Dodge Hall at 6:00 PM

RSA Cinema Survey Results

The results of the RSA Cinema Survey were presented to the General Council tonight. You can see the results here.

Congratulations Amy!

The Housing Services would like to congratulate Amy Osborne as the winner of the $5 Dunkin' Donuts gift card for taking the Cereal Survey at General Council last week.

Recommendation for New Cereals

Today at the Food Advisory Board meeting, the Resident Student Association put forth its recommendation on the addition of new cereals to the Stetson Hall East and Stetson Hall West dining halls. We also recommended that new options be placed in Outtakes. You can see our recommendation here and you can see the survey data here.

Winners of the RSA Cinema Survey Prize

The Housing Services Committee would like to congratulate Daniel Pino and Kristin Richardson for being the two winners of the $25 Visa Gift Cards that were given away at random to two people who took last month's RSA Cinema Survey. The survey results will be unveiled tomorrow evening at the RSA General Council meeting in 335 Shillman Hall at 7:30 PM. The results will then be put on the RSA website.

Heater Spitting Water?

Is the heating unit in your residence hall room spitting water out, dripping water, or leaking excessive amounts of steam? If so, contact the Facilities division at 617.373.2754 or enter a work request online. Facilities will do their best to help fix the problem. You can also contact Facilities if the temperature ends up being too hot or too cold in your room and you don't have a control on the wall.

Solicitors Not Wanted!

This is just a friendly reminder that solicitation is strictly prohibited in all residence halls. If at any point you notice someone in your hall that does not belong there please feel free to call the NUPD at 617.373.2121. Please do you part in promoting safety in the residence halls.

Parcel 18 West Named?

Rumor has been flying around campus that Parcel 18 West might just be getting an actual name soon. The rumor is that the building will be called Renaissance Park Residence Hall. While we don't know if the rumors are true or credible, it sounds reasonable. We'll of course keep the student body up to date. In the meantime, post your thoughts on the comments area about the rumored name.

Money Matters

Jared Schlar, the founder of the website Youbux.com will be speaking about budgeting, credit scores, debt, and other topics as a part of the Money Matters seminar being put on by Student Financial Services and the Student Government Association. The seminar is free to students and is on November 20th at 6:00 PM.

Basketball Doubleheader

On Tuesday, November 25th Northeastern Men's and Women's basketball teams will be hosting a basketball doubleheader against BU in Matthew's Arena. The women's game begins at 5pm and the men's game begins at 8pm. In addition to two great Division I games, free food and prizes will be given away throughout the evening. Admission is FREE for all students. Go Huskies!

Gender Neutral Housing PASSES!

Gender Neutral housing will come to Northeastern's campus in the fall of 2009 due to the hard work of several student groups. Gender Neutral housing will be test driven in Building I with the hope that it will extend to other residence halls in the future. Students will be given the opportunity to express their interest in the program on the 2009-2010 housing application.

Naming Buildings

Parcel 18 West, West Campus E, Building K, 780 Columbus Avenue -- all buildings that have yet to be given a true name. There's an interesting blog out at Inside Higher Ed today, which discusses ten rules for naming buildings that are fairly standard at institutions of higher education. Here at Northeastern, the Resident Student Association has been told that "the University is weary of naming buildings after people who are alive or corporations" because it could harm the University if the person was found to be a racist, or committed a crime, or the company went under. It's a valid point -- after all, would you want to live in "The Enron Village" and go to class in "Kennith Lay Hall"?

For those who don't know, Kennith Lay was chairman of Enron back when it was the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history. Lay was indicted on counts of securities fraud, wire fraud, misleading statements, and conspiracy. Lay was found guilty on several counts, but died of a heart attack before they could sentence him to jail time. As he had not exhausted his appeals, the charges were vacated.

New Link on myNEU

The work of the Housing Services Committee has one again paid off. Now, via myNEU, students can easily go to TV Planner and see what's on HuskyCable. It's on the Community tab of myNEU:

General Council Today

Unfortunately, the Building K presentation won't be happening at General Council today. Feel free to come anyway, however, as the meetings are open to all residents.

Building I & J Might Be Linked to Wilkerson Corruption

The Boston Globe last week raised the concerns that Building I & J may have been involved in the latest alleged corruption and bribery scandal involving Diane Wilkerson. The Globe writes:

What about that big 22-story dormitory Northeastern University is building on the corner of Ruggles and Tremont streets? Why did Wilkerson support that project over many of her constituents' objections that it was far too big and that the school had not provided enough benefits to the community in return for the right to bring more than a thousand students into the neighborhood?

And why did the senator oppose other Northeastern plans to expand farther into her district a year later? Was she acting in the best interests of her constituents, or was she really working to help one of the many developers with whom she had close relationships?

While at this point it is not known for sure if Wilkerson's support for Building I & J against the will of her constituents is in the interest of a developer whom she had a relationship with, this sort of news -- the mere possibility of corruption -- is sure to reflect poorly upon Northeastern as an institution.

The End

The Husky Hunt has ended. While the points won't be counted up for a while, it seems that almost everyone's a winner in terms of having a good time throughout the event whether competing or staffing. This will be one of the experiences that I'll remember the most from my time here at Northeastern, and I'm sure many others will as well.

Looking for Meeting Notes?

All Housing Services Committee released meeting notes are available at the RSA website. Additionally, agendas and other documents like legislation can be found on the site.

Update from the Husky Hunt

It's past 4:30 in the morning here on a Saturday. The sun will rise in less than two hours. At this point, many people have been up for nearly 24 hours already, and teams have been out for over eight hours. For some, the lack-of-sleep is compounded by late nights over the past week preparing for the Husky Hunt. I thought being up until 1:45 AM working on constituent concerns was late -- but the Husky Hunt Subcommittee was up until past 3:00 AM on numerous nights, working hard. Even better, all of us working on the event either have classes or cooperative education as we are all full-time undergraduates at Northeastern. Nevertheless, the Husky Hunt has remained a fun event for both staff and participants. The event has become an institution here at Northeastern, and it is an institution that students truly look forward to and want to be a part of.

On a Housing Services note, it's amazing how many RSA constituents have passed through the Stetson West lobby and raised concerns about topics. Some items brought up include Outtakes creating a foul scent in Stetson West, laundry machines stealing money, and inadequate lighting in some of the residence halls. The Housing Services Committee will work to improve the halls and hopefully rectify these issues.

Finally, I want to just commend the Husky Hunt Subcommittee and everyone here else helping out tonight.

Next General Council

Next week Wednesday (11/12/2008) at the RSA General Council meeting in 335 Shillman Hall at 7:30 PM, Senior Vice President Mark Putnam will be coming to General Council to speak about Northeastern University's future residence hall known now as "Building K." There will be a presentation and time for questions. RSA meetings are open to all resident students.

The Husky Hunt

Quod incepimus conficiemus -- What we have begun, we shall finish.

November 7, 2008 will go down in the history of the Resident Student Association as the third year of the Husky Hunt -- the year that will truly make the Husky Hunt not just another program, but an institution at Northeastern University. The Hunt kicks off at 8:00 PM, but work has been taking place for weeks within the Husky Hunt Subcommittee. With it being crunch time, RSA members were up as late as 2:45 AM last night working to be ready for tonight's 24-hours of fun. It's sure to be interesting.

CUP STEALERS BEWARE!

Have you ever gone to get a drink in the dining hall but couldn’t because there were no cups? Many students have been blaming the cup shortage on the dish washing staff, but this is simply not the case. Over the past year the number of cups, plates, bowls, and silverware that have been stolen from the dining hall has increased dramatically. Dinning services estimates that $110,000 worth of china was stolen last year alone. It is because of these student thieves that our tuition is increased every year. So next time you are thirsty but can’t find a cup thank your fellow students. If you ever see anyone taking something from the cafeteria they shouldn’t be please make them aware that they are causing a direct increase in our tuition.

Missing Symantec Antivirus for Mac on myNEU?

Some students have noticed that there is no Mac version of Symantec Antivirus to download on myNEU. A recent e-mail from the Information Services Help Desk stated:

It was removed from Software Downloads due to the fact that the program had been unstable for many mac users. Since macs didn't have much in the way of security problems the software was deemed to cause more problems than it solved and so it was removed from myNEU.

Temperature Maximums

Earlier in the week we blogged about residence hall heating. We forgot to mention that the maximum setpoint in electronically controlled residence halls is 72-degrees Fahrenheit. If your thermostat won't go up to 72-degrees, then you can submit a work order to Facilities online or by calling (617) 373-2754.

While you do have the ability to set a temperature of 72-degrees, remember that using a lower temperature saves energy. It's especially a good idea to lower the thermostat if you're going to be away for the weekend, or leaving for winter break, or even if you're just going to be at co-op for most of the day. When we help save energy, not only are we helping the environment, but we are also saving our institution money which helps to curb housing cost increases.

What Happened to the Free Coffee for Voting?

On Tuesday, November 4th many students were expecting to get a free tall coffee at Starbucks for casting their vote in the General Election. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case at the Northeastern University Starbucks in the Curry Student Center, and students brought their complaints forward to the Resident Student Association. We contacted the people in charge of Dining Services to find out why this was the case. Here's what we were told:

The Starbucks at the Curry Student Center is not a "participating" Starbucks. Meaning [that] we have the discretion to run a program or bypass it if we feel [that] it will interfere with a smooth operation and create a consumer disservice with long lines and [an] inability to live up to the service expectations of our customer. In a college environment, where timing is critical for students to make their class schedule, it is just not wise to knowingly create a bottle neck that won't make everyone happy.

So Dining Services did not have our Starbucks participate because they wanted to ensure that lines would be limited and students could make it to class on-time, providing better service. If you disagree let us know and we'll let them know.

Question #2 Passed, But Don't Light Up On-Campus

While ballot question #2 passed in Massachusetts, leading the way for possession of under one ounce of marijuana (also known as cannabis, weed, or hemp) to no longer be a crime and instead be a civil offense with a $100 fine, don't light up yet on campus. The Student Code of Conduct makes "possession or consumption of illegal drugs" a violation, and it also makes it against the rules to knowingly be "in the company of anyone who is using illegal drugs." While marijuana may be decriminalized here in Massachusetts, it's still illegal to possess and possession is still illegal by federal statues. The punishment for having under an ounce is simply being changed so that those with a small amount of marijuana are treated more like people who drive a few miles over the speed limit (which is illegal) and less like violent murders, rapists, and thieves.

Voting is November 4th & There is No Tax

There have been a couple rumors going around campus about voting in the General Election. These rumors have been spread by both the far-left and the far-right in an effort to disenfranchise college students and other citizens.

The first rumor is that because of the high number of people expected to vote, that they have extended voting across two days, November 4th and November 5th, and that November 5th is a better day to vote because there will be shorter lines. This is not true! Voting takes place on November 4th. If you show up on November 5th, you'll be a day too late and out of luck.

The second rumor is that voting isn't worth the $40 voting tax. This is also not true! The 24th Amendment specifically forbids poll taxes:

The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.

On a related note, the last NUVotes event will be will be an election watch party held in afterHOURS at 7:00 PM on Tuesday.

IT Upload Speed Project

The IT Subcommittee is working on getting the upload speeds on campus increased, mainly in residence halls. We want to get a general sense of the speeds people are getting in their residence halls now so we're asking for people to take just one moment and run a simple test online by doing the following:

1. Go to www.speakeasy.net/speedtest
2. Under "Choose Server", click "New York City"
3. Wait for the test to run (about a minute)
4. Email the upload speed displayed at the end, along with the time you took the test, and what residence hall you were in to nuspeedtest@gmail.com

Foam Hand Soap

Most, if not all, residence halls show now have new foam hand soap dispensers installed in them. However, some students have brought up the concern that in halls with large common bathrooms, the number of soap dispensers has been reduced. If this is the case in your residence hall, send us a note at RSA@neu.edu.

NRHH "Season of Giving" Food Drive 2008

The Housing Services Committee has been so kind to help out NRHH in their efforts to raise more than 600 lbs (last year's total) of canned food during this holiday season. Boxes will be placed in every Residence Hall and many departments/ offices on campus starting this weekend. Student groups are also encouraged to bring boxes and collect food at their meetings. The person who donates the most canned food wins a round-trip ticket on JetBlue Airlines! Anyone who donates food is also entered in a raffle to win a round trip ticket to anywhere JetBlue jets! The Residence Hall or office that donates the most food wins a pizza or ice cream social of their choice. To be eligible for the airline tickets, every can you donate must be labeled with your name (first and last) and your residence hall/office name. For any questions email berds.c@neu.edu or nrhh@neu.edu. Give and Win to help your residence hall community!

Many thanks to Kathryn Hansis who designed the attractive ad!

Compost Catastrophe to be Corrected

If you have noticed that the yellow compost bins have been missing from the dining hall, first of all, thank you. Don’t worry your ecological self about the situation! As soon as this was brought to the attention of the Housing Services Committee, steps were taken to notify the dining hall managers. They are working on getting more yellow bins so that they are always available. To those dear readers who need a quick reminder, napkins, cups and all food products can be recycled. To clarify, the sign does say to not compost napkins or cups but these are compostable. Dining Services just wants to ensure that the bin looks less like a trash. The only materials in the dining hall that cannot be composted are the plastic from the chip bags, saltine wrappers, plastic covers from the to-go cups and the actual silverware, bowls and plates. We are currently looking for people to stand by the compost bins to educate students about this information. Email megmccormick18@gmail.com if you are interested. Please encourage your friends and fellow dining companions to compost!

Legislation Passes!

With a vote count of 65-0-0, the General Council passed SC FA-08-2 last night to support Gender Neutral Housing! You can read a bit more in the Huntington News. You can read the legislation here.

NU Alert Test

In case you have not yet heard, the NU Alert system will be fully tested Wednesday at 1:00 PM. For more information, visit this page.

Heating Issues

With cooler weather around Boston these days, heat is keeping us warm in the residence halls -- but for some students, it's just too warm! If your heat, in an electronically controlled building (eg. Davenport A, West Campus C, West Campus G) won't go down to 68-degrees, put a work order into Facilities.

In residence halls without electronically controlled heat, if the temperature is too warm, you can adjust it or ask Facilities to do so by entering a work order or calling (617) 373-2754.

E-Mail Slowness

Lately many students have been experiencing very slow e-mail delivery. In fact, sometimes students are seeing e-mail take three days or more to arrive. In the Resident Student Association, this has been an issue as some of our constituents e-mails aren't coming through timely. Just today I received e-mail that was sent on Friday afternoon, and yesterday e-mail from Thursday was coming in. The problem seems to stem from an issue between the Northeastern University mail server and Google's mail servers for Gmail. The number of students that are using Gmail or simply have their @neu.edu e-mail forwarded to Gmail has been causing an issue. Here's the story from Information Services:

Google has changed there rules in regards to the amount of mail being sent to them from external systems. We are working with Google to identify changes that can be made to remove any restrictions on mail. This is causing delays.

In the meantime, a workaround may be to halt forwarding to Gmail and simply check your myNEU e-mail more frequently.

Gender Neutral Housing Legislation Passes Senate; Will Go to General Council

The Student Senate today passed a piece of joint legislation [pdf] supporting the creation of a Gender Neutral Housing program at Northeastern University. The legislation passed with a vote of 35 in favor, 3 against, and some abstaining. On Wednesday, in 335 Shillman Hall at 7:30 PM, the General Council of the Resident Student Association will hear, and hopefully, in accordance with the recommendation of the Housing Services Committee, pass, the legislation allowing it to be sent onto the administration along with the proposal [pdf] for Gender Neutral Housing.

RSA Cinema Survey Closed

After over a week in the wild, the RSA Cinema survey has been closed off. We had over 2,000 responses. That means, if you took the survey and provided an e-mail address, you have around a 0.1% chance of winning one of the $25 Visa Gift Cards!

Ever Wonder What the Vending Machine is Trying to Say to You?

When you look at the Vending Machines on campus, there's an extra feature on them that's not usually on other machines. Do you know what I'm talking about... that little teeny, tiny screen that says one of two things: "Cash or Card" or "Cash Only".

Obviously that little screen is telling you what method of payment that you can use. What you might not know though is what is going on when the machine says "Cash Only".

When the machine says "Cash Only", it means that the card reader is out of sync with the server and we have to ask someone to align them back up. (It's actually the same technology as the card reader in the laundry room.) And, as you might intuitively know, when the machine says "Cash Only" you can only use cash.

So now you find yourself asking well what do I do if I find a vending machine that says "Cash Only"??

You should email laundry@neu.edu. That way we can get the card reader back online and available for everyone's use. (You can also use this email address to alert us to any problems that occur in the laundry room too.)

And on one final note, if you've ever want a certain type of product (whether that's food, drink, or toiletries) in a vending machine.... let us know! We're here to be your voice in the halls.

Editorial on FSL Leadership LLC

Hi everyone.Just wanted to post a link to VP Housing Services Matthew Soleyn's editorial that was published in the Huntington News on 10/20. He responds to some recent opposition in regards to the Greek LLC initiative. Check it out here.

RSA Cinema Survey

Hi everyone,

Help us improve RSA Cinema (Channel 117 on Husky Cable)!

Take the RSA Cinema Survey by clicking this link:

http://www.studentvoice.com/neu/rsacinemasurvfl08

If you take the survey, you can enter for a chance to win a $25 VISA gift card! The survey ends Sunday, October 26th at 7pm. It takes less than 5 minutes!

Thank you for your time.

Testing

Lately we've been doing some testing on the Housing Services Blog. Sorry if you saw test posts that were left up too long.

Preventing Sickness on Campus

I know it isn't exactly fun to talk about but as we move into colder weather it is going to become harder and harder to prevent colds, the flu, and the norovirus. Here are some some tips for preventing these terrible sicknesses:

Flu
GET A FLU SHOT!

Every year about 20% of Americans get the flu. Last year 200,000 people were hospitalized for flu symptoms and 36,000 people died from the flu. Many college students see the flu as a minor illness but please think of the rest of the population. The flu is seen as a deadly disease for young children and the elderly. Since the flu is spread through the air it is really important to think of who you could pass the flu onto.

Colds
#1: Wash Your Hands
Most cold and flu viruses are spread by direct contact. Someone who has the flu sneezes onto their hand, and then touches the telephone, the keyboard, a kitchen glass. The germs can live for hours -- in some cases weeks -- only to be picked up by the next person who touches the same object. So wash your hands often. If no sink is available, rub your hands together very hard for a minute or so. That also helps break up most of the cold germs. Or rub an alcohol-based hand sanitizer onto your hands.

#2: Don't Cover Your Sneezes and Coughs With Your Hands
Because germs and viruses cling to your bare hands, muffling coughs and sneezes with your hands results in passing along your germs to others. When you feel a sneeze or cough coming, use a tissue, then throw it away immediately. If you don't have a tissue, turn your head away from people near you and cough into the air.

#3: Don't Touch Your Face
Cold and flu viruses enter your body through the eyes, nose, or mouth. Touching their faces is the major way children catch colds, and a key way they pass colds on to their parents.

#4: Drink Plenty of Fluids
Water flushes your system, washing out the poisons as it rehydrates you. A typical, healthy adult needs eight 8-ounce glasses of fluids each day. How can you tell if you're getting enough liquid? If the color of your urine runs close to clear, you're getting enough. If it's deep yellow, you need more fluids.

#5: Take a Sauna
Researchers aren't clear about the exact role saunas play in prevention, but one 1989 German study found that people who steamed twice a week got half as many colds as those who didn't. One theory: When you take a sauna you inhale air hotter than 80 degrees, a temperature too hot for cold and flu viruses to survive.

#6: Get Fresh Air
A regular dose of fresh air is important, especially in cold weather when central heating dries you out and makes your body more vulnerable to cold and flu viruses. Also, during cold weather more people stay indoors, which means more germs are circulating in crowded, dry rooms.

#7: Do Aerobic Exercise Regularly
Aerobic exercise speeds up the heart to pump larger quantities of blood; makes you breathe faster to help transfer oxygen from your lungs to your blood; and makes you sweat once your body heats up. These exercises help increase the body's natural virus-killing cells.

#8: Eat Foods Containing Phytochemicals
"Phyto" means plants, and the natural chemicals in plants give the vitamins in food a supercharged boost. So put away the vitamin pill, and eat dark green, red, and yellow vegetables and fruits.

#9: Eat Yogurt
Some studies have shown that eating a daily cup of low-fat yogurt can reduce your susceptibility to colds by 25 percent. Researchers think the beneficial bacteria in yogurt may stimulate production of immune system substances that fight disease.

#10: Don't Smoke
Statistics show that heavy smokers get more severe colds and more frequent ones.
Even being around smoke profoundly zaps the immune system. Smoke dries out your nasal passages and paralyzes cilia. These are the delicate hairs that line the mucous membranes in your nose and lungs, and with their wavy movements, sweep cold and flu viruses out of the nasal passages. Experts contend that one cigarette can paralyze cilia for as long as 30 to 40 minutes.

#11: Cut Alcohol Consumption
Heavy alcohol use suppresses the immune system in a variety of ways. Heavier drinkers are more prone to initial infections as well as secondary complications. Alcohol also dehydrates the body -- it actually takes more fluids from your system than it puts in.

#12: Relax
If you can teach yourself to relax, you can activate your immune system on demand. There's evidence that when you put your relaxation skills into action, your interleukins -- leaders in the immune system response against cold and flu viruses -- increase in the bloodstream. Train yourself to picture an image you find pleasant or calming. Do this 30 minutes a day for several months. Keep in mind, relaxation is a learnable skill, but it is not doing nothing. People who try to relax, but are in fact bored, show no changes in blood chemicals.

Norovirus
Noroviruses generally spread through contaminated water and foods, although they can also pass from person to person. You may become infected by:

• Eating food or drinking liquids that are contaminated with norovirus. Shellfish and salad ingredients are most often infected with the viruses. Food other than shellfish may be contaminated by food handlers.
• Touching surfaces or objects contaminated with norovirus, and then placing your hand in your mouth.
• Having direct contact with someone who is infected. For example, if you are a caregiver or share foods or utensils with someone who is ill, you may become infected.
• Persons working in day care centers or nursing homes should pay special attention to children or residents who have norovirus illnesses. This virus is very contagious and can spread rapidly throughout these environments.

Please be safe and take the necessary precautions to prevent these diseases from invading our campus. Thanks to WebMD for this information.

Insitutions Offering Music Download Services are the Minority

Back in Summer I 2008, the Housing Services Committee took a look at Ruckus and the possibility of bringing a legal music download service to campus. The result of our work was the well-researched Sense of the General Council of the Resident Student Association Regarding the Ruckus Music Download Service. During our research, we were told by the people at Ruckus that a large number of schools already offered services to students and more were going to be doing so. We were also told that Congress was going to mandate that Universities sign up for a service. While this is something that companies like Ruckus and groups like the Recording Industry Association of America are lobbying for, it really was not true.

Last week, a report was issued by EDUCAUSE, a non-profit group with a mission of advancing higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology, that provided hard numbers based off a survey of 994 colleges and universities. We saw that in reality, the number of institutions that have bought into a music download service is only 15 percent. The number of institutions considering the option is 17 percent. While these numbers are increases over the prior year, it shows that colleges and universities offering music download services to students is a minority.

While a music download service could be of use to students, it does have a cost, as as the General Council stated, no music download service will be acceptable to residents until it meets several conditions, including:

• Supporting all modern Windows and Mac operating systems
• Allowing music to be transferred to all types of portable music players
• Allowing music to be burned to compact disc.

Student Group Freedom at Risk in South Dakota

You may have heard how the College Democrats went through the Residence Halls recently encouraging students to go out and vote on November 4th, or to register and vote absentee. Well in South Dakota, student groups at institutions receiving public funds could be prohibited from such activities should ballot initiative measure 10 (the South Dakota Open and Clean Government Act) pass. The act, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education, would "prohibit the use of public money or government resources for lobbying, campaigning, or other political purposes". The Chronicle reports that while "the measure does not explicitly mention higher education, opponents say it could be interpreted to cover student organizations." Speaking from a student perspective, the Executive Director of the South Dakota Student Federation, an organization of student governments, said that the initiative could "serve as a 'gag law' against student groups."

Here in Massachusetts, we are lucky that there are no such ballot initiatives coming up on November 4th. However, all students should be reminded that their votes are important, and that by voting students can have an impact on issues affecting students.

Vote for MOHA; King & Queen

In the Resident Student Association, we encourage students to vote. Whether it's voting for the President of the United States of America, voting for the President of the Student Body, or voting for Homecoming King & Queen and the Mayor of Huntington Avenue, voting is a great way to have your voice heard. That said, the Resident Student Association has endorsed Savannah Rose for Homecoming Queen, Topher Nelson for Homecoming King, and Matthew D. Soleyn for Mayor of Huntington Avenue. You can vote for them on myNEU. Additionally, there are a few events this week that are free to attend. The first is Meet the Court, which is tonight at 8:00 PM in the Curry Student Center ballroom. Second is The Mayor's Debate at 6:30 PM tomorrow in the Curry Student Center ballroom. Third, Thursday at 6:30 PM there is a Homecoming Pep Rally on the North Campus Quad between Speare and Stetson East. All three events are free to students.

RSA Television

Rumors are flying around about something new coming in January 2009. Something called RSA Television. Well, the rumors are true. In early January 2009, RSA Television will be launching. Look out for more about RSA Television in November.

Registered Parties

Hello Everyone! This is my first post so I thought it would be a good idea to introduce myself. My name is Mallory Brown and I am the new Assistant Vice President of the Housing Services committee. A major project I am working on right now is bringing registered parties to Northeastern. This would mean that students who are of age could have save parties with alcohol with the responsibility falling on the host. This project is still in the research stage but so far I have found a ton of schools who are starting to offer registered parties. I will keep you up to date with any future information. Let me know what you think. Have a great day!

myNEU TV Listings Link

Last year a suggestion came to the Resident Student Association that myNEU feature a link to TV listings so people could easily see what was on the different HuskyCable channels in an easy to read way. We have since taken that suggestion to Information Services, and it is likely that a link to TV Planner will be added soon.

Remember, if you ever have ideas related to HuskyCable, feel free to contact the Resident Student Association at RSA@neu.edu.

FSL Leadership LLC Passes

If the administration listens to a joint Sense of the General Council of the Resident Student Association and the Senate of the Student Government Association, there will be a Living Learning Community in Building I next year called the Fraternity and Sorority Life Leadership Living Learning Community.

You can read more in the Huntington News report today, and check out the actual legislation here.

RSA Cinema Rebranding

Hi everyone! This is my first post but I wanted to tell you exciting news. The RSA Cinema Channel (117 on Husky Cable) is undergoing a revamp. In the next month we will be teaming with NUTV and adding their content to the channel. We hope to open the channel to more student content in the future. Therefore, our new name for the channel will be RTV.

Look for new updates in the future as we undergo this exciting change!

October 2008 on RSA Cinema

We've got new movies for October on RSA Cinema. The video below provides more detail:

Roommate Matching In the News

Over at The Daily Free Press, Northeastern University is an example of how an institution can match incoming students up for housing in an effort to put compatible roommates together. They write:

At Northeastern University, students have been matched to their soon-to-be roommates based on an electronic compatibility questionnaire since 2004. The relatively new program has found big success, Northeastern Student Affairs Director Anne-Marie Regan said.

"We did a survey of how many did a room change, and less than 2 percent did [since the program came out], not necessarily because of roommate problems, but because they wanted a different type of room," she said. "We don't get a lot of complaints."

The Daily Free Press is the independent student newspaper at Boston University (similar to our Huntington News but published daily instead of twice a week), and at Boston University they lack such roommate matching. Boston University's Director of Housing cites that students often do not tell the truth on questionnaires, change behavior between high school and college, and also says that "assigning students who are similar in likes and dislikes does not challenge students to learn and grow."

Upcoming Legislation

This week the Resident Student Association and Student Government Association will be hearing legislation in the form of a Joint Sense of the Council / Senate to provide support for the Fraternity and Sorority Life Leadership Living Learning Community. You can see the legislation that will be brought forward here. If you have any comments or concerns, post them here, send us an e-mail, or talk to a General Councilor in your building.

Dining Hall Issues

The last two editions of the Huntington News have featured some disturbing information about the dining halls. While nothing was a major health risk for students, it's a good idea that if you ever notice something off in the dining halls that you let one of the managers there know or let us know. You can always e-mail your dining issues and concerns to the Resident Student Association: RSA@neu.edu.

In case you missed the most recent story, the issue at hand was that non-critical food inspections were failed in both Stetson Hall West and Stetson Hall East (Irving M. Levine Marketplace). By the third summer inspection, however, Stetson East passed with no violations, which is good news.

See The Capitol Steps

The Capitol Steps are coming to campus on Monday as a part of NUVotes. The show is just $5, and it will be at 8:00 PM in Blackman. You can get tickets at the Blackman box office in Ell Hall. For more information, you can visit NUVotes.com.

Presentation on the Proposal for a Fraternity and Sorority Life Leadership Living Learning Community

Last night at the General Council meeting, there was a presentation on the Fraternity and Sorority Life Leadership Living Learning Community that is being proposed. If you missed it, you can see it here in PDF format.

Feel free to post questions and comments.

The Huntington News Reports on HuskyCable Additions

Mark Rizzo of The Huntington News reported yesterday the news from last week's General Council meeting that two new channels would be added to HuskyCable this fall. The channels are FitTV and G4TV, and we are awaiting more information on an exact add date.

October Movies

The Housing Services Committee has made its picks for RSA Cinema movies for October 2008. Here are the movies you'll be able to enjoy on RSA Cinema next month:

• Anchorman
• Crash
• Forgetting Sarah Marshall
• Leatherheads
• Speed Racer
• Made of Honor
• The Forbidden Kingdom
• Baby Mama
• The Love Guru
• 28 Days
• Sex and the City

Building K

The Huntington News reports today about Building K, the residence hall planned for St. Boltoph Street on what is currently Cullinane Hall. Building K will open in the fall of 2011, and once it opens Northeastern will be able to house around 60% of the undergraduate student body on campus.

Laundry Problems

When you notice a laundry problem let us know! If no one finds out, the problem won't get fixed, so please e-mail laundry@neu.edu or report a problem at laundryview.com

Laundry Bucks Balance

Last Wednesday we blogged about checking your laundry bucks balance and how it was showing up as a "unlisted" dining plan. Well, thanks to quick work by Vice President Ryan Fox of the Student Government Association, on myNEU your Laundry Bucks now show up with their own description:

Vote

Remember that hall council elections are tonight in your building lobbies from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. This is your chance to vote for President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

Forum with President Joseph E. Aoun

On September 25th at 7:00 PM, Northeastern University President Joseph E. Aoun will be holding a forum where students can ask questions and hear about plans for the future of the University. If you're interested in attending, you'll need to R.S.V.P. by e-mailing SGAForum@gmail.com.

Patriot Day

Seven years ago today, hundreds of innocent Americans and dozens of other innocent men, women, and children were killed by al-Qaeda terrorists in the hijacking and crashing of planes into the World Trade Center and Pentagon. Patriot Day is designated in memory of these people whose lives were taken too soon.

Check Your Laundry Bucks Balance

Did you know you could check your Laundry Bucks balance anytime you want?

It's simple, just logon to the myNEU Portal, click on Self Service, and then on the right side "View HuskyCard Balances." Laundry Bucks show up, for now, as an "Unlisted" plan under your Dining Plan. This can be a bit confusing, and so the Student Government Association is currently working to change how this is displayed, but for now you can check how much you have left in Laundry Bucks this way.

Students Caught Trying to Get Liquor

We warned a couple days ago here on the blog about rumors of efforts to catch students drinking underage. Turns out, it's true, and Northeastern University students have been caught. In a Boston Globe story, it was reported that, "Dozens of underage drinkers didn't get the good time they were looking for after a trip to liquor stores over the weekend in Boston," and that the students were reported to their parents and institutions. The report further states that an estimated 400 students were stopped from obtaining alcohol and that "the students attended a number of local institutions, including Newbury College, Lesley University, Boston University, Boston College, Suffolk University, Northeastern University, and Emerson College." The students from Northeastern University who were reported will likely end up before the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution, where they could face disciplinary action.

Fall General Council Starts Today

We are less than 14 hours away from the first Resident Student Association General Council meeting. I heard a lot of interest at Welcome Week events in Housing Services area items and improving the residence halls, and some people even expressed interest during the summer orientations! I hope to see you there.

Win $100

This is not spam, we promise!

The Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution, otherwise known as OSCCR, is holding a contest where you can win $100 by filling out a short survey. They'll be surveying during the Activities Fair on September 11th and you can also enter the contest at the OSCCR website starting Thursday and continuing for a week.

When the Cashier Asks for ID, Say No!

When you're doing shopping for your apartment or residence hall room, buying lunch, getting new clothes, or picking up some snacks at the supermarket, if the cashier asks you for ID to use your credit or debit card, politely tell them "No!" By showing your ID, you increase your risk of costly identity theft, which can take years and cost thousands of dollars to clean up. Sadly, the problem stems from corrupt employees who will copy down information off your ID or memorize it and write it down later for misuse.

Under policies from the major credit card companies (Visa and MasterCard, and any establishment that takes Visa and/or MasterCard plus American Express), identification cannot be required for a sale provided the cardholder has signed the back of their credit or debit card. If you haven't signed your card, be sure to do so because not signing it can also increase your risk of identity theft, makes your card void in some cases, and could even make you liable for fraud that is typically covered by your bank if you followed their directions and signed the card.

If you hear of merchants in the Northeastern University area that are requiring identification for credit/debit cards, or breaking the rules by having minimum purchases or surcharges to use a credit card (which is even worse because it is against the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts), let us know or report the fraud by calling 1-800-VISA-911 for Visa cards or by submitting an online report for MasterCard cards.

Our Skits Made National Public Radio

This summer at orientation, the Resident Student Association was involved in the "Husky Hello" skits that were shown to all incoming freshmen. Members of the Association took part in the skits, one of which featured what can happen to people who drink a little too much. The skit was mentioned in a story by Monica Brady-Myerov on National Public Radio that aired this morning focusing on how Northeastern University has been changing its approach to educating students about drinking and disciplining students who break the rule. The story and features clips of audio from the skits (including the voice of an RSA member in the skit) as well as audio clips from Valerie Randall-Lee of the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution, Amaura Kemmerer of the Office of Prevention & Education, and Captain Albert Sweeny of the Northeastern University Police Department. The story also mentions how seven area College and University Presidents signed onto the Amethyst Initiative to start a dialogue on the drinking age and a clip from a parent who was happy that they explained the rules well. You can hear the story here through Real Player.

Move-In Weekend 2008

Move-In Weekend 2008 has come and gone, and all-in-all it seems to have gone smoothly. Here's a few points about the weekend:

• We were told by one administrator that this was "the best they've seen in years" with regards to the smoothness of move-in.
• We noticed great work from the Facilities Division helping with move-in and responding to work orders quickly. New students and parents were surprised at their great work, and on behalf of the residents I passed a thank you e-mail onto the head of the department.
• If you just moved in and are having issues with anything, you can reach Facilities at (617) 373-2754, or put a work order in at www.workreq.neu.edu.
• Students are excited about Laundry Bucks! It's a great program and I thank the hard working folks in Student Government who helped bring this to campus. If you haven't heard, Laundry Bucks gives you 15 free loads of laundry a semester, a $45.00 value.

A couple other things:

• We've heard rumors of Northeastern University police on the prowl trying to catch people handing off alcohol or drinking underage -- so be smart and don't break the law otherwise you may wind up before OSCCR or the Roxbury District Court!
• All the Welcome Week events can be found at the Welcome Week website.
• If you're interested in joining or learning about RSA, our first meeting is in 335 Shillman Hall at 7:30 PM on Wednesday

September 2008 on RSA Cinema

Watch the video below to learn about movies being featured on RSA Cinema this month:

The Past, Present, and Future of RSA Cinema

This summer the Housing Services Committee worked to develop a report evaluating RSA Cinema's past, current state, and looking forward at what needed to be done. We also set the stage for the creation of an RSA Cinema Manual and developed plans for advertising and promoting the channel. The full report is over fifty pages, and can be downloaded here as a PDF. Feel free to comment on the report, and look for the more formal RSA Cinema Manual next week.

Where Have All The Blog Posts Gone?

We've been pretty busy the last couple weeks in the Resident Student Association. While it is intersession, we were occupied with move to-from, advocating for the residents, and training the Resident Assistants. So the blog didn't get updated for almost two weeks. This update isn't much, but check back later today for a big piece of news!

New Colors

We've mixed up the colors on the Housing Blog for readability. Let us know what you think!

The Lowdown on Elevators with Expired Certificates

The Resident Student Association recently received no fewer than five notifications from students about elevators having expired inspection certificates in the Residence Halls. Upon hearing about the problem, we immediately got in touch with Facilities to let them know and to find out why this was the case. What we found out from Facilities is the following:

The University is in compliance with the requirements of both Massachusetts Elevator Regulations (524 CMR) and Mass General Law (MGL c. 143, sec. 64) pertinent to annual elevator testing and certification. Our service provider has submitted all the applications and required fees to initiate an annual inspection by the Commonwealth. The University has a formal testing schedule, produced by the Department of Public Safety, for both July and August. However, the Commonwealth hasn't enough adequate/competent inspectors for all elevators within the state. As such, the inspection supervisor at the Department of Public Safety, personally, began testing the elevators at Northeastern on Tuesday 12 August, accompanied by a few inspectors-in-training. They will continue this regimen until all elevators are tested.

We were further assured that there is no safety concern with any elevators on campus. By law, the University must leave up the expired certificates until new ones replace them, which is why for the time being you may see expired inspection certificates in elevators on-campus. If you ever notice an elevator issue in the residence halls, report the problem by calling the Facilities Customer Service center at (617) 373-2754.

laundry@neu.edu

laundry@neu.edu

Remember that e-mail address, and spread it throughout the residence halls when your fellow students (or you) have problems related to laundry on campus. Whether it's a dryer not drying, a washer not taking quarters, a card reader not working, or a laundry room that doesn't seem to be cleaned enough, the Resident Student Association can help. Plus, if you have an idea related to laundry, you can e-mail it to laundry@neu.edu and the Housing Services Committee will look into the idea.

There Is No Freshman Housing Shortage

In the Resident Student Association we frequently hear rumors about potential problems on-campus. The latest big rumor was a shortage of 300 beds of freshman housing, caused by more students deciding to attend Northeastern and live on-campus than expected. However, after investigation we found this rumor is totally false and without merit. So don't worry freshmen -- you'll have a bed on-campus come September. And RA's need not worry about their single rooms being converted into doubles to house freshmen either.

GrandMarc Issue Sent Back To Committee

After a long debate, the General Council decided that it was not yet time to take a stance on the topic of Northeastern placing students in the proposed GrandMarc at St. Boltoph Street, and voted down the Sense of the Council that had been brought forth. However, the General Council formally referred the matter to the Housing Services Committee, so we'll be dealing with it later in the year.

Northeastern Ranks #568

In a ranking of United States Colleges and Universities, Northeastern came in at #568 today. The ranking, done by Forbes, is an alternative to the U.S. News and World Report where Northeastern was ranked #96. Forbes claims that "for too many years, information about the quality of American higher education has been monopolized by one publication" and offers their ranking as an alternative.

Forbes' rankings feature a methodology featuring the perspective of being in a student's shoes. Part of the ranking is based on student evaluations of courses and instructors, part of the ranking is based on alumni being listed in the "Who's Who in America" and the rest of the ranking is based on student graduation rates, debt, and the number of students and faculty who have won national awards. For more about the rankings, you can go here.

Freshmen: Get Involved

Today's incoming Freshmen are able to access a wealth of information about the campus they will arrive at in September due to the wide availability of the internet. Blogs written by students about campus issues, such as this one are a great way for students to find out about issues on-campus and learn. Thus, it did not surprise me one bit to meet an incoming freshmen last night at orientation who was a reader of the Housing Services Blog.

That said, I want to encourage all incoming freshmen readers to follow the advice given by Northeastern's Associate Dean and Director of Residential Life, Robert Jose in a Boston Herald Article by Rochelle Stewart: Make the most out of your four years of college and get involved. At Northeastern, you may very well have the chance to make the most out of five or six years of college, so do it. Join student groups, take on leadership, and be involved. The Resident Student Association and the Housing Services Committee is a great way to get involved and have an impact on campus, and we will welcome anyone who is interested.

Our GrandMarc Comments

If you read the housing blog during the last couple months, you'll know that the Resident Student Association was very active in the public comment process for the proposed GrandMarc at St. Boltoph Street. We culminated our work on a public comment with a letter of comment and accompanying legislation. You can read the entire document, known as Council Resolution S2-08-1, here in PDF form. Our work related to the GrandMarc isn't done. We're currently working to address the topic of Northeastern University possibly leasing a block of space in the building for students to live in leased housing. If you have comments on this topic, feel free to post them here on the blog.

Sustainable Food Production at Universities Nationwide

Eaters must understand that how we eat determines how the world is used." – Wendell Berry

Change is happening all over our campus. Student activists are growing in population world-wide, nation-wide and throughout Northeastern's campus. The Cafeteria can be an integral part of an effort to make changes in health, agriculture, resource usage and the entire food system. When researching this topic I found many interesting articles and websites, sparking my interest in bringing this important movement to Northeastern. (I will include more information about the articles below.) Cornell University and their Department of Agriculture sponsor a Farm to School Extension program, connecting locally and sustain-ably grown food with schools from elementary to university. Occidental College recently connected the Tierra Miguel Foundation's organic farm to the Los Angeles Public schools in an effort for children to learn in a hands-on (and mouth-on!) way about agriculture and the environment. The University of Connecticut pledged last year to buy as much food locally "as possible" and has started producing honey on the property to fufill the 1,000 pounds of honey that students go through per year. The University of Vermont (UVM) currently partners with Black River Produce, supplying all of their fruit and vegetables, Champlain Orchards, supplying apples and cider, and the Vermont Fresh Network, connecting UVM to more farms in the area. Our landscaping on our city campus is beautiful. Imagine planting apple trees, squash or pumpkins in just garden plot on campus and eating that food in the Caf. Suddenly the beauty of our campus means something and is helping the environment. Chartwells, our catering and dining services provider, has just unveiled it's plan to "Go Green". How can we support them? Give them your feedback and show your appreciation of their efforts. Post your ideas here and the Housing Services Committee will bring them back to Chartwells in an effort to work together to make Northeastern greener!

The following articles were informative about this subject. I would suggest reading them for more information:

• Fresh from the Farm and Into the Classroom provides an overview and a link to a more detailed report about this program from the department of Urban and Environmental Policy at Occidental College's partnership between organic farms and Los Angeles public elementary schools.
• This article gives more information about Cornell University's successful Farm to School Program.
• This is a handbook for schools for buying and serving locally grown food in school meals provided by the USDA.
• Slow Food Nation: Come to the Table is a movement for a week of awareness of locally grown food. University Students are holding their own month of awareness and activism to get more locally grown food on the tables at their dining halls. Find out more about the Real Food Challenge at this website.
• This is a link to the Uconn newspaper article about the introduction of beehives and production of honey to their campus in an effort to become more sustainable.
• Check this site out for more information about Northeastern University Dining Halls. Discover their plan to "Go Green" by downloading the PowerPoint presentation on the home page.

The Housing Crunch On-Campus

It's a well-known fact that each year at Northeastern University more students apply for housing than there are beds. The same is the case elsewhere, and this year the crunch is even worse due to economic conditions. High fuel costs have led students who once planned to commute to school to want to live on-campus, and the fixed cost of residence hall living is becoming more appealing as utility prices rise. Additionally, dining halls have become a more reasonable option for students to eat at because of the rising costs of food.

This year's trend is notable and has been covered by a lot of media. The Boston Globe today featured an article by Peter Schworm about the cruch in Massachusetts. In Mississippi, LaRaye Brown of the Clarion-Ledger writes about the situation at the University of Southern Mississippi. Also, today the Florida Sun-Sentinel writes about the squeeze for space at Florida Atlantic University. Finally, Brittany Anas of the Boulder Daily Camera wrote Saturday about how the University of Colorado is booking hotel rooms to house students temporarily due to the crunch.

Lack of Posts & Writing for the Blog

Blog updates have been slow lately.

However, there is good reason. I, and the rest of the Housing Services Committee have been busy working on initiatives like the Fraternity and Sorority Life Leadership Living Learning Community, RSA Cinema, and making sure student voices are heard with regards to the GrandMarc. Blog updates should be more regular soon, and if you're interested in helping by writing on the blog send me an e-mail!

This Month on RSA Cinema

We've got a video of information about the August movies, it's going to run on RSA Cinema between films in August

August Movies on RSA Cinema

In August, RSA Cinema will feature the following movies:

• The Bank Job (IMDB)
• Brick (IMDB)
• The Bucket List (IMDB)
• Flawless (IMDB)
• National Lampoon's Animal House (IMDB)
• Saving Private Ryan (IMDB)

If you have a movie request, be sure to tell us.

Why Do We Have NUIDs?

At Northeastern University, every student has a student ID number. Students often wonder why they need to remember their Northeastern University ID number, known as "NUID" for short and why the University doesn't just use an existing number such as a Social Security Number.

It turns out, the elimination of using Social Security Numbers is the entire point of the NUID. Social Security Numbers, in the wrong hands, can lead to serious, costly fraud. The Social Security Administration has a good website about the problem of identity theft. By having a NUID, in the normal course of business you won't need to use your Social Security Number unless you are doing something where the law requires a Social Security Number such as employment or financial aid.

On a historical note, the first major call for Northeastern to replace Social Security Number use with something else came back in 2005 as a resolution from the Student Government Association. The resolution called for the change to happen with the next incoming class, but because dozens of University systems needed to be changed, the NUID transition didn't happen until February 2007 over a three-day weekend.

Hot Tubs In the Residence Halls?

Megan K. Scott of the Associated Press wrote an article that was published this week in The Detroit Free Press about how colleges and universities are trying to draw students by pampering them with amenities such as wake-up calls, hot tubs, laundry services, valet parking, and apartment-style housing. While at Northeastern we have some amenities such as apartment-style housing for upperclassmen and honors freshmen and laundry service (through Husky Express), we're far from having snacks always available, valet parking, or hot tubs in the residence halls.

The movement to replace the traditional dormitory with resort-like amenities stems from the demands of millenial students and their parents, who are looking for a bigger bang for their buck. Students today are looking for more in college housing than students twenty years ago. Students, for example want single rooms because they want their own space and more privacy. However, in the article the Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students at Daniel Webster College in Nashua, New Hampshire warns that students may miss out on learning communication and negotiaion skills by not sharing space as freshmen. Likewise, a risk of having services available to students for laundry, cleaning, and parking is that students won't learn on their own how to do these things.

We in the Housing Services Committee would like to know how you feel about giving students more amenities in on-campus housing. Post your comments or send us an e-mail.

Useful Links Updated

Hi blog readers! The blog hasn't been active the last few days due to the Housing Services Committee being extremely busy as we approach our next meeting this Thursday, which will be full of business items related to the GrandMarc, RSA Cinema, and HuskyCable. We've updated the useful links section, and some of these links will wind up in the revamped Housing FAQ for the RSA Website. If you have any ideas for the Housing FAQ, post about it here. You can see the current FAQ here.

Public Comment for the GrandMarc

On the Housing Blog we've had several posts related to the GrandMarc on St. Boltoph Street. While the Resident Student Association may issue an opinion on behalf of the residents at Northeastern, as we head off to the public meeting I want to let you blog readers know that as members of "the public" you can send the Boston Redevelopment Authority your comments on the project during the public comment period. In order to do so, please mail your comment letters to:

Mr. Jay Rourke
Boston Redevelopment Authority
One City Hall Square
Boston, MA 02201-1007

You can also e-mail your comment to Jay.Rourke.BRA@CityofBoston.gov. Comments must be submitted by to August 1, 2008.

Additionally, we have another document for your viewing pleasure. It's what the proponents gave us on Wednesday. You can view it here.

GrandMarc Public Meeting

A public meeting is set to take place today at 6:00 PM in the YMCA meeting room. The meeting is for community input and questions on the GrandMarc proposed for St. Boltoph Street. All residents are encouraged to come. The Housing Services Committee will be there. While we probably will not be blogging live as we did today, we'll be sure to update everyone.

Live Blog: GrandMarc Presentation to the Student Body

Several members of the Housing Services Committee and other members of the student body and some from the Student Government Association are currently in 333 Curry Student Center awaiting the beginning of a presentation to the student body about the GrandMarc proposed for St. Boltoph Street. I'll be updating every few minutes or so with what's going on.

7:09 PM Here to talk to us is Jason Reynolds from Dallas of Phoenix Property Company and also a member from Lincoln Property Company. Lincoln has about 3500 people nationally and they are in every major city in the country, including several buildings in Boston. They're going over some of the other development projects they do. They're going over some of the key facts and points about the building. They also are mentioning the students they are targeting: those who attend colleges in the Fenway area.

7:12 PM: In total, there are about ten students here along with a couple members of the University administration in the area of Enrollment Management and Student Affairs. The proponents of the project are mentioning how they are the first ones to try a private residence hall in Boston. They've done it elsewhere leasing directly to students, but in Boston they "modified the plan to go to leasing blocks of rooms" to institutions. Berklee is looking at 300-400 beds, and the Colleges of the Fenway including Wentworth, Emmanuel, and Simmons are also looking at buying beds.

7:12 PM: Part of their plan includes allowing Universities to put in their own RAs and also they surveyed and found that the idea of mixing students from different schools together would not be an issue, which gave them encouragement to leasing to individual students. However, a City of Boston concern was "where's the control and management" of the system since there wasn't a direct link back to a school. Also, a brief mention of how they are meeting issues from students related to feedback from the community. We have a 8 page document which we'll try to get scanned and made available or obtain from the GrandMarc proponents.

7:18 PM: The proponents claim that the issue of non-students in the building is a non-issue, because they now can limit the housing to full-time students. This is interesting, because at last month's community meeting community members seemed to believe otherwise. Also, students would not be totally stuck with someone if there were roommate conflicts because they can relocate or move people and if an institution leases a block they can choose where students go within that block. Reynolds mentioned how they have a community assistant program, where some residents act as an adviser and in return they get discounted (or free) rent. The community assistants aren't there to enforce rules strictly, but rather to help safety out. Reynolds gave the example that if someone was rolling a keg down the hall, a community assistant could notice it and let security know and put a stop to the activity for the good of others. Longwood Security was hired to create a plan, and Longwood Security has done other securing of buildings and has worked with institutions like Berklee. Also, students who get caught breaking the rules will have their school notified and parents notified.

7:26 PM: The issue of no dining facility was mentioned. There will be mostly apartment-style living with kitchens (85% of the facility, to be exact). The question was put forth to students "do students use kitchens" and there was some talk about the use of kitchens and it was mentioned how Northeastern upperclass residence halls all have kitchens. Additionally, elected city officials prefer to see no dining facility because students can go to local businesses and express their purchasing power there or even get a job at local businesses.

7:33 PM: I asked about how they would deal with the current residents at the YMCA during construction and where they would live. The answer is that they'll move them to the back of the building while the front is renovated and then they'll construct a fire wall and move the residents to the renovated area and then renovate the back side of the building. Some bad news -- individual residents won't be allowed to sublease their space out to others. They'll have to go through a program GrandMarc offers. Also, Reynolds said that they might be able to accommodate the cooperative education program at Northeastern which he believes is "integral" to the institution. A point was made that the move-in and move-out is pretty easy for students because everything is fully furnished. The proponents said that 796 beds wasn't much, and that there could be no ability for Northeastern students to live in the building if other schools buy up the space.

7:39 PM: The proponents asked about how Northeastern housing works for upperclassmen. Members of the Housing Services Committee informed them about the process and they said their target is those students who want to live near or on-campus, but can't because of a lack of housing. Another proponent here is Michael Vaughn, a community and government consultant. They also mentioned that they will bill people for using utilities such as electricity over a certain level and that a basic cable package would be provided and students would have the option to upgrade to premium packages. On the topic of security, they mentioned how guests must be signed in and leave an ID at the front desk and sign out.

7:47 PM: Christopher Brielman, a Housing Services Committee member asked about why the security seems to be so "draconian" and stricter than Northeastern. He raised the issue of community building and how it could be hard to develop a community and there might be 24 different communities. Vaughn responded that they erred on the side of more strict because of concerns over security. It was mentioned that schools would have a say, and if a school leased a block of rooms they could say their students can access all the floors the school leases. Vaughn stated that they did a lot of market research. Reynolds asked how students find apartments off-campus and asked if students wanted on-site management. I asked about the building and concerns that the company will sell the building off after a few years and that a new company may not have the same ideals and the building could go downhill. They said that it is important to them that students live living in the building because they want to have people live there year-after-year and keep revenue coming in to give them a return on their investment. Also, a benefit to the City of Boston is that nearby landlords will need to be more competitive and meet the standards the GrandMarc provides.

7:50 PM: Reynolds spoke to us about amenities that they will have to target students. Northeastern's Senior Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, Philomena Mantella, asked the proponents if they could give us a price in today's dollars. Reynolds didn't give an exact price, but said that an average is around $1,100. He said that a unit could be $2000 a month, or $800 a month, depending on the size, and that 15% of the area will be a traditional dormitory style building with a price that could be around $600 to $700. Also, all the pricing is single-occupancy rooms.

7:55 PM: The proponents said that the building will eventually be sold, as it is a for-profit venture, but that their equity partner does not want to be seen as "flipping" properties. They also talked about how they look at making the lease options for institutions flexible for balance sheet reasons.

7:57 PM: Michael Raphael, who is the SGA Representative for the Resident Student Association, asked why this is so close to northeastern if they want to reach so many schools. They said they want to have Northeastern lease space. The reason the site is so near Northeastern is because that was where the land was available. Also, the YMCA will be upgraded through the process. Vaughn also mentioned how brand new YMCAs will be built in West Roxbury, Hyde Park, and the North End from this project.

7:59 PM: Representative Raphael asked another question, about how the turnaround could lead to more traffic on St. Boltoph Street. The proponents said that the turnaround was added because Northeastern had concerns, and that the turnaround was a change from the original PNF due to community concern.

8:04 PM: Christopher Brielman asked how the GrandMarc could help Northeastern phase out its Master Leased Properties Program faster. The proponents said that Northeastern can do this by building housing on campus and transferring students out of the leased properties. I asked how this is phasing out the MLPP, as it would be leasing space in a new facility. There was also a point raised by Senior Vice President Mantella up that the City of Boston could see Northeastern replacing one lease with another if Northeastern replaced current leased properties with the GrandMarc.

8:05 PM: SGA President Ranley asked about conduct of students and relation to Codes of Conduct. The response was that the rules are very similar to University codes of conduct and laws (eg. felonies are not allowed, you can't give underage people alcohol).

8:11 PM: The proponents brought up how parents can be informed if students violate rules because they co-sign on leases. They said all students have to have parents co-sign, but that there are some cases where an income test is used and usually students alone cannot qualify. Also, Reynolds said that parents can have their credit reports damaged if a student commits "three strikes" and is evicted. I asked them if in their market research they looked at whether or not students wanted to have their parents required to co-sign and how students wanted accountability to work. Reynolds said they did not, but they may put that topic on a future survey. A question came up about graduate students and it was said that graduate students could be housed with University blocks. Reynolds said graduate student housing is a huge issue nationwide, and they want to accommodate the demand.

8:16 PM: Vice President Ryan Fox raised the issue of concern to Northeastern about the GrandMarc limiting Northeastern's ability to expand housing for its own students and goals of bringing students back to campus. A "loaded question" came from a Housing Services Committee member about what benefit would Northeastern see if none of its students live in the building. The response from Vaughn was that we should ask our administrators, because they expected Northeastern to try to buy the land but they did not. Vaughn said they would "love to lease this building to Northeastern," and that they will "be a good neighbor." Reynolds reiterated "we'd love to fill it [the GrandMarc] with Northeastern students."

8:20 PM: Senior Vice President Mantella said for the building to be a high-quality residential facility, they might need to look at many conditions and look at the interests of the students, the University, and the politics. Reynolds said that they don't need master leases, and that they build the building and make beds available to Northeastern students outside of a master lease. Vaughn said that they respect Northeastern's work to build good relationships with the neighborhood, and understood Northeastern's hesitance to supporting the project and making known a desire to lease a block of space.

8:22 PM: I asked about pedestrian traffic and how 800 more people will impact the Green Line. Vaughn said that the students are already here in the community, which is what the community members at last month's public meeting already rejected as a statement based on assumptions that were untrue. The proponents pointed to traffic analysis in the Draft Project Impact Report and offered to make their traffic consultant available.

8:25 PM: I asked about gender neutral housing in the GrandMarc and if they had plans for it. They said they didn't have plans, but then Vaughn said that the housing would be "market driven," and a University leasing a block could offer it. Additionally, we were told that ADA compliance would exist for disabled individuals.

8:26 PM: I missed the name of the person from Lincoln Property Company -- he is John Cappellano, the Senior Vice President for Development and Construction.

8:27 PM: The meeting is now over. I gave one of the proponents my RSA business card asking for a copy of the documents they gave out so we can make those available.

This concludes the live blog coverage of the meeting. We'll have more for you in the next week as we approach July 24th -- the date of our next committee meeting.

Live Blog: Parcel 18 Vendor Meeting

Members of the Housing Services Committee attending a meeting today regarding a recommendation from the student body about a vendor to go into the retail space in Parcel 18. With Wi-Fi internet access covering all of the Curry Student Center, we're taking this opportunity to blog live and post updates throughout the meeting.

6:10 PM: The total survey results came back in alignment with the residential votes having Panera Bread and Jamba Juice.

6:19 PM: The committee talked about the current Au Bon Pain contract, which ends in 2011 but gives a five year option to Au Bon Pain for extension. The initial contract was a ten year contract with two options for five year extensions, and we are currently in the first five year extension. Because of this contract, it is not likely that Au Bon Pain can be replaced until 2016.

6:22 PM: A discussion took place about vendors and their hours. The City of Boston has limits on how late businesses can be open, and an issue is that some vendors may not want to be open late. Panera traditionally closes around 9 or 10 PM, but students want an option that is open all night or at least until 2 or 3 AM.

6:24 PM: The square footage in Parcel 18 is a total of 3400 square feet, so one option is having two vendors. Some places are only around 1500 square feet, so fitting say a Johnny Rockets and a Jamba Juice is possible.

6:26 PM: We talked about the location on Columbus Avenue and how students may not want to travel to the other side of campus. However, with 1200 people in Parcel 18 plus the other students in the area from buildings like Davenport A, and Coventry. It's interesting because when there are more things to go to, people might actually go there. We also talked about possible issues related to bad groups of people from the Roxbury area that might end up coming to the vendor place.

6:30 PM: It was brought up that people are able to get burgers and fries all over the place -- but then it was mentioned that people said they want a place for a good burger.

6:32 PM: A major point in the discussion was that Panera requires the most space. If we take a Panera, we won't be able to have another vendor. The chair of the meeting suggested that we need to look beyond the numbers from students and look at other aspects. It was mentioned that some options provide more variety. It also was mentioned that some options are similar -- for example, Cosi and Panera are similar in their offerings of salad, soup, and sandwiches.

6:37 PM: Here's the vote count from the student survey:

• Johnny Rockets: 38
• Cheeburger Cheeburger: 15
• Fuddruckers: 15
• Panera: 60
• Viga: 25
• Cosi: 23
• Jamba Juice: 42
• Other: 13

6:41 PM: The chair (Vice President Ryan Fox of the Student Government Association) brought up that a recommendation might not be made tonight, as he isn't sure he is comfortable. It was brought up that the comments from the survey need to be looked at, because students made comments. A lot of students apparently have said they want a heathy option and then a "burger" option as well.

6:43 PM: Vice President Fox expressed that he believed the survey was misleading. However, after a review of the documents it was found that this wasn't the case and there was consistency. It was brought up that Panera is the leader of the survey, and that if students want it, that we should support a Panera. It was also brought up that a similar number of students asked for one healthy option such as Jamba Juice and one other. The chair suggested that the pairings and the intent be looked at.

6:47 PM: The idea of satisfying the most people was discussed. The goal isn't to please people who want a certain option, but rather to please the highest number of people.

6:50 PM: I raised a question about the survey and how choices were limited by the committee. We discussed the possibility of maybe doing another survey. There seems to be a debate in the room about following the survey result of Panera coming out on top versus following the desire of many students to see two options.

6:52 PM: Debate continued about the survey and the data interpretation. The recommendation from the student body needs to be done "as soon as possible" per request of Marina Iannalfo, the Dean of Campus Life. The meeting ended so everyone can go to the GrandMarc presentation.

This concludes the live update... feel free to post your comments, thoughts, and feedback on the comments section of the blog!