Last Day of Move-In

Today's the last day of move-in, and if everything runs as well as it did the last few days, this will be one of the most successful move-in weeks ever, especially given that this is the largest move-in ever with the addition of International Village.

There are plenty of Welcome Week events coming up, including Duck Tours tomorrow at 5:00 PM, so check out www.northeastern.edu/welcomeweek for more information or stop by the Welcome Week booth on the Krentzman Quad in front of Ell Hall to learn more.

International Village Station Poll

Dining Services wants to know what station at International Village students like the most. They have put four options up on a poll on their website. The options, and the results of the poll as of 3:02 PM Eastern Daylight Time are:

Sushi Station (42.3%)
Tandoor Station (23.1%)
Wood Stone Oven Station (19.2%)
Charbroil Station (15.4%)

Free Meals for INVR Residents

If you aren't a Resident Assistant and moved into International Village, you have free meals until meal plans for the fall kick in on August 31st, 2009. The plans are 15 meals per week staff plans, and thus do not have guest passes, and do not have dining dollars, but don't cost extra money from student tuition or housing payments. The reason for giving students these meal plans is to offset having to move in to the building (likely from a location with a kitchen) before meal plans kick in due to move to/from dates.

Dining Updates on Twitter

We have plenty of dining updates this morning -- including pictures of the International Village Dining Hall, the inside of the International Village Residence Hall, and the Green Terrace -- online on Twitter. Check it out here.

New Room / Apartment Issues

Every year during move in/out/to/from time the Resident Student Association is bombarded by students who report problems in their new living space. Whether it's air conditioning not cooling to 68-degrees Fahrenheit, something that wasn't cleaned, a light that won't turn on, or a screen with holes, problems tend to pop up. When something does happen, the easiest way to get it resolved is to enter a work request with Facilities online. You can also call them at 617.373.2754. If you find that your work request is not fufilled and you don't get an explanation from Facilities, let us know by e-mailing the Resident Rapid Response Team at NortheasternRSA (at) neu.edu.

Art In International Village

Today's issue of The Huntington News has a story on our latest Residence Hall, International Village, and the artwork that will be featured in the building. You can read the story here. Additionally, an editorial about Shepherd Fairey and allegations of dishonest work can be read here.

Three "New" Beverages in International Village

On August 31st, when the International Village Dining Hall opens, students will have access to a few beverages that previously were not available in the dining halls. The first is the often-requested Dr. Pepper, which will be accompanied by its fellow Dr. Pepper Snapple Group beverage Canada Dry ginger ale.

Additionally, students will be able to enjoy Fruit Punch [red] POWERAID in the International Village Dining Hall, with Lemon-Lime POWERAID still available at Stetson Hall East and Stetson Hall West.

The new beverages are being offered, in part, thanks to the work of Resident Student Association members who voiced student opinions, suggestions, and concerns to Dining Services. If you ever have an idea for something new in the dining hall, let us know!

New Dining Hall Opens August 31st

The International Village Dining Hall is set to open on Monday, August 31st, 2009. The newest dining facility to Northeastern will feature a state-of-the-art residential dining experience for Northeastern students, and will supplement the existing facilities at Stetson Hall East & Stetson Hall West helping to meet the volumes of students who will be using the dining facilities.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.