Residential Services
Photo Provided by Andrew Nordley
Mail Services Every Porter student has a mailbox assignment at the Porter Student Mail Center. US Mail, UPS deliveries, and all inter-campus mail is distributed here. Your mailbox number and combination will be included in your registration packet, which you will receive on the first Monday after your arrival. All University-student communications will be delivered to your mailbox, so it is important to check it frequently. Porter’s mail is sorted alphabetically by last name, so you do not need to include your mail box number or room number in your address. However, it is important that your mail is addressed using the name that appears on your student registration form and not a nickname. Your mailing address at Porter will be: Your First and Last Name Due to storage space constraints, mail can only start to arrive here one week prior to your arrival. Large packages are difficult for the Mail Center to handle during the first week of Fall Quarter; a package may be returned to the sender if there is no room for it, or if it is not picked up promptly. If you can possibly wait a week or two before shipping your larger items, please do so. Laundry Services Porter's two laundry rooms are located on the first floor of B Building and attached to E Building (Apartment). Washers and dryers are coin operated, and each cost 75 cents per load. You must supply your own detergent and fabric softener. We recommend that you stay in the laundry room while doing laundry. Some of our students find it a great place to hang out! There is a change machine in the room, but it always helps to bring quarters with you. Telephone/Voice Services UCSC owns and operates its own telephone and voicemail system: SCS Voice Services. When you subscribe for telephone services through SCS, you will be assigned an individual telephone number. Voice mail and long distance are also available. Residents in double and triple rooms share phone lines but have individual numbers. Plan to bring your own telephone. You are welcome to bring your own answering machine, but voicemail options will be available. If you plan on bringing a cell phone, please be aware that only Verizon and Nextel carriers receive an adequate signal on the UCSC campus. A signal is hard to get in some rooms of Porter, regardless of the carrier. Internet Access ResNet , another campus-owned service, provides free Internet access and computing support. Using the Ethernet port from your room provides a fast Internet connection and won’t tie up your phone line. There are Ethernet ports in all bedrooms. Although you may need to buy an Ethernet card to upgrade your computer, there are no special fees or charges for this service. To take advantage of your Internet port you’ll need an Ethernet capable (or up-gradable) computer with the appropriate configuration. If you need assistance you can call the ResNet Help Desk at 459-4638, and a room visit can be scheduled if necessary. Transportation On Campus: If you have a BIKE and ride it a lot, bring it! If you are thinking about buying a bike just for college, you might want to wait until after you’ve seen the campus and had a chance to check out the bus system and the footpaths. If you do want to bring a bike, bring a strong “U” bike lock. **TAPS provides an on-campus DISABILITY VAN service for students with impaired mobility and are unable to use the regular campus shuttle service. Current medical documentation must be provided, and reservations must be made in advance. For more information on this service, call 831. 459-2829. Off-Campus: The Santa Cruz Metro BUS is an efficient way to get around town, or even to San Jose, and it’s easily accessible at all campus shuttle stops. City buses run both ways through campus and into town every 10-15 minutes on weekdays, and less frequently on the weekends. All rides are free to UCSC students with a valid Student ID. Need to get to the AIRPORT? The following organizations provide transportation to and from the San Jose and San Fransisco airports. Reservations are recommended. Greyhound Santa Cruz Airporter Shuttle ABC Transportation You can also connect to the Amtrak TRAIN system: Amtrak connector from San José More Santa Cruz Options Security Services The campus has a 24-hour on-call police force and fire department. At Porter, administrative assistance is offered during business hours on weekdays at the Porter Housing and Residential Life Office (B250). The office is also open until the early evenings for general assistance. A Coordinator for Residential Education (CRE) is on duty 24 hours a day, and Residential Advisors (RA) are also on duty in the early mornings and on the weekends. See staff descriptions. Each College is patrolled in the evenings by a Community Safety Officer (CSO). Students may call the Porter CSO for assistance anytime between 7:00 pm and 3:00 am. In addition, a Resident Advisor is available by pager from 3:00 am to 9:00 am. The Porter Residence Halls’ exterior doors are controlled by a card access system. Your ID card contains a programmable chip and serves as your key to the exterior doors. Only Porter residents have access to the exterior doors after 8:00 pm weekdays, and all day Saturdays and Sundays. To gain access to the buildings in the evenings, a guest must call you from an exterior campus phone to arrange admittance. Both of the campus entrances close each evening at 8:00 pm. The kiosk guards screen visitors every night during the academic year. Those visitors not having legitimate University business are turned away. If you plan to have visitors in the evening, you should call one of the kiosk guard stations (West Entrance 459-3388/Main Entrance 459-3377). Banking Services Since we are often asked this question, we consulted the yellow pages for local banking services. This is not intended as an endorsement of any of the following services. It is a short list of what is available in Santa Cruz, and the banks most convenient to the campus. Bank of America Bay Federal Credit Union Wells Fargo Bank of the West The University Cashier’s Office at Hahn Student Services will cash checks with a valid student ID for a 25 cent service charge. The maximum amount for checks at the Cashier’s Office is $25.00. |
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