Living in a Community

Living in a residence hall or apartment cluster means living in a community. Community living requires respect, flexibility, and responsibility from all residents. Staff and students must work together to ensure that the community living experience is positive and educational for everyone.

Living in any community requires that each person take responsibility for his/her own behavior. Each of us has the potential to have a positive or negative impact on the community. For instance: If someone plans a fun activity to decorate the hall or host a BBQ they have a positive impact for everyone who participates.
Other choices have a decidedly negative impact on others, such as…

• someone making a lot of noise when others are trying to sleep
• someone abusing alcohol and making a mess in the bathroom

Expectations about behavior for UCSC students are clearly explained in the Code of Student Conduct http://www2.ucsc.edu/judicial/. Additional policies specific to College Eight are found in the College Eight Handbook distributed when you moved in and listed below.

While both the Code and the Handbook spell out the University’s expectations for students, residence hall students also have some opportunity to develop self-directed expectations. Each living group and each set of roommates, with the assistance of their resident assistant (RA), will develop standards of their own. For instance:

• Is it ok to share personal items in the room?
• Will bathrooms be co-ed?
• How will the community handle messes made on the hall or in bathrooms?

The Judicial Process

When a student is accused of violating a university policy there is a process that takes place to determine what should happen in response to the incident. In most cases the process the student goes through looks like this:

• The Incident is documented by a staff member, CSO, or possibly the police.
• A Coordinator for Residential Education (CRE) reads the report and sends students letters requesting a meeting. The letters state what policies the student is alleged to have violated.
• The CRE will meet with students involved and consider all of the available information
• The CRE makes a decision about whether the student violated the policies or not based on the preponderance of evidence. If there was a violation, the CRE usually proposes sanctions.
• Sanctions take two major forms. The first is a status such as a warning or probation. The second is educational, such as requiring an alcohol program for someone who violated the alcohol policies. The type of sanction is based on what the student did and the impact it had. We don’t use quotas or a three strikes policy.
• The student can either agree to the proposed sanctions or appeal them.
• Whether or not you keep your housing contract is a separate decision the CRE makes. Violations of student conduct policies also violate the housing contract. Serious and/or repeated violations can result in loss of housing privileges.

Your Rights and Responsibilities

As a student you have certain rights and responsibilities in the judicial process. Following is a basic overview:

• You have a right to be treated with respect.
• You have a right to a fair hearing.
• You have a right to have information about you held as confidential.
• You have the right to get advice from others whom you trust, and to present witnesses or evidence in support of your case.
• You have a right to know what you’ve been accused of and to read written reports related to the charges.
• You have a right to reasonable privacy in your room. Staff will generally act only on what they see, hear or smell from outside your room. Police act according to state laws and police procedures.

• You must know the policies and comply with them.
• You should ask questions if you don’t understand.
• You must use good judgment in making decisions about your own behavior.
• If you are confronted about your behavior, you have a responsibility to cooperate with CSOs or others who may confront you.
• You must take responsibility for your own choices and the consequences of those choices.

Policies

The university and College Eight adhere to all federal, state and local laws. It is our goal to provide a safe, secure and educational community for our residents. In that spirit, this list is compiled to highlight some of College Eight’s policies, procedures and regulations. All of these are in conjunction with the university policies stipulated in the UCSC Student Policies and Regulations handbook, Terms and Conditions of Housing and the College Handbook.

This is by no means a complete list. It is your responsibility to know the rules of College Eight and the university. For more information about specific rules and policies, refer to the Student Policies and Regulations Handbook online at http://www2.ucsc.edu/judicial.

Alcohol - Federal, state and local laws, as well as university policy, prohibit alcoholic beverages  from being sold, furnished, possessed by or given to any person under the age of 21. In addition, no possession or transportation of open containers or consumption of alcoholic beverages will be allowed in public areas by any person,  regardless of age or college affiliation. Kegs or other “common source” containers holding alcoholic beverages are not allowed on campus and will likely result in termination of your housing contract.

Amplified & Acoustic Musical Instruments - Musical instruments are allowed in the residential facilities, but their use must conform to established courtesy/quiet hour policies. The playing of amplified instruments and drums are not permitted in the residential facilities at any time.

Drugs and Drug Paraphernalia - The university and College Eight must adhere to all federal, state and local laws as they pertain to illegal substances. Delivering, furnishing, transferring, manufacturing, using and possessing illicit drugs or drug paraphernalia is strictly prohibited anywhere on the grounds of College Eight. Drug paraphernalia is defined as all equipment, material and products intended for use or designed for use in growing, processing, harvesting, storing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling or otherwise introducing a controlled substance into the human body. Violation of these laws and policies will result in judicial action at the college level and may result in police and local, state and/or federal intervention.

Harassment - Physical and verbal harassment will not be tolerated by students, staff or faculty and is prohibited on the UCSC campus. If any form of harassment occurs, notify a staff member immediately. It is the policy of College Eight and the university that the working and learning environment shall be free of harassment, including any form of sexual harassment. The college and the university will take action to eliminate harassment. For further information on sexual harassment please refer to the Student  Policies and Regulations Handbook or contact the campus Title IX Officer at (831) 459-2462.

Inappropriate Behavior - Any students who are a danger to themselves or other community members, or who refuse intervention for a situation harmful to themselves or others, may be asked to leave and/or be restricted from the college residential area. A student may also be required to commit to a behavioral contract involving the intervention of other resources as prescribed through the disciplinary process.

Quiet Hours and the Noise Policy - Due to our densely populated living spaces, it is very easy to disturb classes and/or your neighbors with loud music or other noises.   Consequently, to preserve the academic and community standards of College Eight noise levels must be held to a minimum at all  times (referred to as “Courtesy Hours”). It is the responsibility of each resident to make sure her/his activities are not disturbing to neighbors.  Additionally, “Quiet Hours” (where music, television, or guests should not be heard outside of a bedroom/ apartment) are established for each residential area. Quiet hours are 10 pm to 10 am Sunday through Thursday and 1 am to 10 am on Fridays and Saturdays. This policy is enforced by the residential staff and Community Safety Officers for the benefit of all residents.

Smoking Policy - In accordance with the UCSC Policy for a Smoke-Free Environment, all residence halls and apartments are smoke-free. Smoking is prohibited inside the residence halls (including student rooms) as well as residence hall lounges, inside individual apartments, community rooms,  lounges, cafes and dining halls. Additionally, smoking is prohibited in all indoor public spaces at UCSC - both academic and residential. This no smoking policy includes exterior stairways, decks and balconies. Smoking outside is permitted only in designated areas, 25 feet away from all buildings.