HLA- add here your items

[gmer...@umich.edu]

Please post an item and describe what you are looking to our advisory board for feedback on here.

[kmo...@umich.edu]

1) With the new implementation of medical amnesty, what is your sense from fellow students in your hall about the knowledge/familiarity around the topic? Is their further education needed on the topic? Have you noticed a changed the culture around reporting and seeking help in medical emergencies?

2) The Housing Student Conduct Office (HSCR) is interested and currently exploring additional options for students who are in violation with housing policies. Right now, we offer a 1:1 arbitration and a community circle process. Do you have any ideas or thoughts of other ways to address situations in which violations occur? Do you see value in providing more options for students to resolve their conflict without having a formal housing disciplinary record? Are there ways to better connect those who violate a rule with those students who live in the greater community?

3) Would you see a benefit of having a public reporting tool that would allow a student to report an incident to housing staff? Ex. Using an online form to report an incident of bias that occurs off campus.

[mzab...@umich.edu]

Hi everyone,

I wanted to get your thinking about several policy-related elements. Sharing one of these elements below.

Summary

With Northwood I, and II now entirely undergraduate housing, we are exploring how and if we should be more consistent with our air conditioner policy across all undergraduate residence areas: that is, air conditioners approved in medically necessary instances only.

This would be a departure from our current practice of allowing any Northwood I and II residents to bring their own A/C unit (if within BTU maximum and we install.)

We suggest continuing the current Northwood practice for Northwood IV and V residents (see “existing policy” below), because of the number of families present in these locations (and we cannot allow families to have them and not single residents)

REASONING

We currently have a different policy and process for students who live in the residence halls and Northwood III compared to Northwood I and II.

We are trying to streamline our policies and procedures so they are as consistent as possible across Housing, regardless of where a resident lives. This has the effect of simplifying our operations, reducing costs, and removing policy incongruities.


PERTINENT POINTS

1. Electrical service in non-renovated buildings cannot handle a large number of air conditioners; we need to balance the ability of the existing wiring to handle the added electrical load of air conditioners.

2. Currently, all residents in Northwood I, II, IV, and V are eligible to bring their own air conditioning unit and have it installed by Housing. These residents are charged $75 for installation, with a monthly operating fee of $30 or $40 dependent on the BTU designation of the air conditioning unit.

3. This policy results in several different layers of administrative oversight in HIO, Northwood CC, Housing Billing, and on-site facilities staff (the hidden cost of our existing procedures)

4. This year, we stopped charging students for air conditioning units in the traditional residence halls and Northwood III, if there was a medical need for air conditioning. We stopped charging in order to be equitable- a large proportion of our residences now have air conditioning, and charging those who had a medical need who were not placed in one of the air conditioned buildings just did not seem fair.


IMPLICATIONS

A. It is possible that undergraduate students who live in Northwood I or II who currently have air conditioning (but do not have a medical reason) could be affected for the 2013-2014 school year, if they opt to return to Housing.

B. Students in Northwood I and II may look across the street to Northwood IV and wonder why there are so many more air conditioners in that section of the apartments.

BACKGROUND

Existing Policy in Northwood I, II, IV, and V: http://housing.umich.edu./northwood/air-conditioners

[pgri...@umich.edu]

I would love to hear student experiences with the Community Website connected to each residential community - see online at http://www.housing.umich.edu/reshalls/communities

I'd love to hear how students use them, what information is most helpful, what you see the future being that is helpful to students.
thanks!
Patty Griffin

[pgri...@umich.edu]

It is time to determine furniture that will be purchased for the East Quad Community Center - I'd love to show you the plans at the November 14th meeting to get your feedback. Please let me know if possible at that meeting? Thanks!

[car...@umich.edu]

I think that would be great! Greg, Elizabeth, Eli, and I will chat on Friday. Would you plan on bringing samples or images? Would it be possible to see a rendering of the space so members have a sense of what the space will look like/what the flow of traffic around the space?

[jef...@umich.edu]

1) Wired telephone lines in each residence hall room cost $3.50 per line per month. Is this charge worth it given that most students bring cell phones with them to campus? Beyond cost, what are the pros and cons to keeping wired telephone lines?

2) How do students prefer to consume video content, i.e., T.V. shows and movies? Streaming video services like NetFlix or Hulu? Cable television? DVD or Blu-ray? Something else?

[toni...@umich.edu]

We are curious about what menu info you'd like to see at the entrances to our dining halls at any given meal time. The menu for that meal? For the entire day? Today's featured offerings? Upcoming special meals or dining events? Services such at Meals-to-Go or Feel Better Meals that students may not be aware of? What else? If you have a chance to stop by Hill Dining Center and can observe the digital screen near the greeter station, your input concerning the currently displayed content would be helpful as well. Thanks!

[cpla...@umich.edu]

I don't think students pay much attention to the signage at dining hall entrances. When I work the greeter station at the Bursley dining hall, almost every student is half way to the service area by the time I swipe their card; I have only seen one student ask to look at the posted menu before deciding if she wanted to swipe in. My friends and I always look at the menus online before coming to eat and the only time I noticed the screen at the Hill Dining Center was when I arrived a few minutes early but all I was really paying attention to was the time because I was hungry! I think having the menu posted is redundant but posting special events and the Feel Better Meals might help get the word out to students, assuming they actually take the time to look at the sign. As I mentioned, most students, myself included want to get inside the dining hall and to the service area to get food as quickly as possible.

[amr...@umich.edu]

Prior to school starting up in earnest, I had looked at my dorm's community website and had been rather disappointed because most of the pages were blank and the format confused me. I hadn't been on the website since August, but your post encouraged me to look at it again and I have to say it's a really great resource! Very easy to navigate and provides access to a lot of helpful information :)

[amr...@umich.edu]

During Parent-family weekend, I met a freshman from Northwood (I can't remember whether it was I, II, or III) and got into a conversation with him about housing. He was complaining about how isolated he felt at Northwood and how he wished he could have had the experience of living in a traditional dorm. He went on to say that he didn't think freshmen should have to live at Northwood. I was wondering what everyone (especially those who live at Northwood now) thought about that idea.

[car...@umich.edu]

Thanks for adding the post about Northwood and the community websites! Would you please move them to the general area of the discussion forum?