Do you think Dominican is Haunted?

I recently spoke to CSA member Tim Keenan about the annual CSA Haunted Tours event, which will be occurring Oct. 30 in the Social Hall. Apparently this is a huge event. Last year they had about 250 attendees, which would explain their desperate need for volunteers as Diana questions below. Keenan mentioned that many of the attendees in the past have been families from the outside community because it is a free event.

Keenan also expressed concern about this year's event though because of an article published in today's issue of the Dominican Star entitled "Dominican Ghosts Stories: Fact or Fiction." The story claims that Dominican ghost stories are false and quotes a few sister's. Keenan does not seem to agree with this because he claims his group has been doing research on the ghosts stories for a few years now. He says they have conducted interviews with many faculty and staff who believe Dominican really is haunted. This is where their event begins because they tell the staff and faculty stories during the CSA Haunted tours.

So will the Dominican Star story effect CSA's Haunted tours? Probably not, but the question of Dominican being truly haunted still lingers. It is up to you to decide?

CSA looking for volunteers...

On myDU, there was a notice from Commuter Student Association asking for more volunteers for the third annual CSA Haunted Tours.

Here is what was posted on the myDU page:

Do you have what it takes to be involved in CSA Haunted Tours? Then come and join us at Our Next Meeting: Thursday, October 23rd, 2:30, Lewis Lounge (it’s at the end of the first floor of Lewis by the stairs).
We are still looking for plenty of volunteers to fill positions such as tour leader, spook, social hall leader, and much more. It will be a night of fun, free candy and deserts, and scary stories galore! This is our third time hosting this at Dominican and we hope to truly make it an event to remember! Anyone is welcome to get involved and the actual tours are open to the enitre Dominican community. So, invite everyone to join us at CSA Haunted Tours on Thursday, October 31st from 7pm to 1am in the Social Hall!!!
For more information, contact Tim Keenan at keentim@dom.edu or contact CSA at csa@dom.edu.

My question is has the organization had problems in the past with getting volunteers to take on necessary roles? Or is CSA just getting the word out early to insure more people know about it - and as the day nears, things work out? I've heard that this was a big event for CSA and if they're doing this for the third time, then going by that, I'm guessing gaining volunteers is not too big of an issue. Otherwise why would they continue to organize the event? I personally think it's a cool idea and would consider going on one of the tours. This year will be my last shot, so I might as well.

Always entertaining...

I attended last Wednesday's Resident Student Association (RSA) general meeting, which continued to prove to me that it's one of the most entertaining/fun meetings to attend. It may be due to there being a large pool of residents who can attend the meetings (versus other clubs that are more specialized in interest), that's true, but the energy at the 10 PM meetings is always at pretty high levels. I've been to RSA meetings in years' past, and I don't recall it being as lively as the recent meetings. I do notice that the same group of residents attend the meetings, which helps the liveliness of the meetings considering the group's overall energy.

The reason I'm bringing this up is because of something that happened at last week's meeting. One of the residents who usually attends meetings came to the meeting pretending to be a foreign student looking for where the RSA meeting would be held. He adopted a ridiculous foreign accent (it did its job at making others laugh) and commented on the reception he got from members at the meeting.

An RA who was sitting near him calmly explained to him that he was in the right place. I was sitting in my seat and wondering what was the point of this acting stint. Either way, I have to admit it was pretty funny. It was a good way to get people energetic in the evening when they're probably worn out after a day of classes and homework.

Later on in the meeting, the resident who did the 'foreign student' act asked the others at the meeting about their opinion on his performance. No one could deny it was memorable, though I would love to find out if it was planned. Did the RSA executive board have prior knowledge that it would happen?

Do you attend Mass?

Every Sunday I do my best to attend the 7 p.m. Mass in the Chapel and it always makes me upset to see the lack of participation. The same students, professors, and sisters are at Mass every week. We are a Catholic community and a large part of our community has grown up around the church, gone to Catholic grade schools, high schools, etc. If we have this background, then why do we never fill the chapel on a Sunday night?

It is such a convenient time for students, especially residents, to come to Mass. I can understand if commuters do not go because they are most likely at home, but I even go in sweatpants sometimes, as it is better to go looking like a bum, then not go at all.

Are we all just worn out with Mass? Are that many people not Catholic? Are we cramming in our homework, which we put off the entire weekend, during this time? Are we just too lazy to walk up to the second floor of Lewis on a Sunday night? Please enlighten me.

Printing: out of control?

I know that as a resident without a printer in my room, I'm feeling more and more guilty about printing out long (20 -30 pages) readings for class via the printers on campus (Library, Tech Center, etc.). I have no choice for certain classes since you have to have the readings with you in class. While I see some students with laptops in class, I don't see it as common thing to do. Though bringing your laptop to class where you can view the reading in class without having to print it out (the printed readings are just going to be tossed at the end of the semester anyway) is a smart idea. Especially if you want to do your part to "Go Green."

But still sometimes you have to have a printed out copy just to make quick notes or highlight key passages. And I don't know about anyone else, but I would feel a little awkward if I were typing out notes in class during a lecture. It seems impolite to me. If Dominican were a bigger institution or a state university with big lecture halls, I would feel more comfortable bringing my laptop since with a smaller class size - you feel like you're under the microscope. The only person with a laptop in a class of 30 is like the odd person out. I'm not sure if teachers are even encouraging students to bring their laptops to class. I haven't heard anything about it.

Now I used to have a printer in my room during my freshmen year, but it broke down and I wasn't too eager to print out long readings. I would have to pay for the ink cartridge if it ran out. But having ready access to a printer to print out papers was beneficial. All too frequently, I go to print a paper out on campus and I usually resort to printing at the Tech Center. The Library is always full at the time I need something printed out. I feel like I need to plan time to print so that I'm not in a rush.

Thoughts?

Longer than expected

For the past few weeks in the dining hall, there has been an increasing number of times where the line was backed up due to the ID scanning machine not functioning. Students have to resort to handing their ID over so their names and ID numbers would be written down on a piece of paper. When it happened once, I brushed it off, but I've noticed that the manual system has been occurring with inexplicable frequency. I wonder what is going on? Is it something Chartwell's is "trying" out similar to "Trayless Tuesdays"? Or is it just on some days, the machines are just not working? I understand if it happens once in a while, but I think it's happening too frequently for that to be the reason.

Today around 5:15 PM, I had to manuever my way through a long line of students waiting to show their IDs and get something to eat. While the first half hour or so of dinnertime (which starts at 5 PM) is a busy time and long lines are expected, I'm pretty sure the delay was also attributed to the ID scanning machine being down. I didn't check for sure if the machine was down (I didn't eat dinner in the dining hall), but the line wasn't moving smoothly as it should have if you only had to scan your card and go. Not to mention at lunch today, I had to give my card so my name and ID number could be written down. So it's not too farfetched to assume that at dinnertime, the situation would be the same.

I'm the type of person who sometimes just wants to get their food and sit down without a long delay. For those who don't have night classes, you're better off going to dinner around 6 PM if you want to eat in the dining hall. Or come down a few minutes before 5 PM. The initial rush is ridiculous on some days, which gives me reason to come down later than usual.

Cost of Housing: Just a Typo

After contacting Res Life about the difference in the cost of housing for the same exact room in Centennial for returning and incoming students, I finally received a reply, which stated that this is in fact a typo and has been corrected on the website.

I am glad to find out that some students are not having to pay more money just because they are upperclassmen.

Commuters have your voice heard

Commuters do you have any issues or problems you would like to address on campus? Well, I recently noticed a commuter comment box located on the bullitin board at the old grill, so you can have your voice heard.

It looks like Student Involvement is attempting to get commuters more involved on campus...but I would be curious to see if anyone actually leaves comments or if a empty box sits.

Incidences in Power: Just between friends

Recently in Power Hall, there were slightly different messages containing racial slurs on the same dry erase board (i.e. one message was erased and another one was written on the board, etc.) outside on someone's door. The resident who lived in that room was contacted, according to Trudi Goggin, Dean of Students. While the initial impression was that the resident was being targeted, the person told Goggin that it was between him and friends. Because the issue was different from the graffiti incident in late September (where no one has been held accountable), a university-wide email has not been sent like with the graffiti incident.

Goggin told the resident that anything posted in a public area (i.e. outside one's door where it is viewable by anyone walking down the hallway) should not offend, injure or harass anyone who sees it. Anyone who sees an offensive message will not know the story behind it...that it was just something between friends. So, this is a cautionary lesson for residents: watch what you write.

Do You Smell Gas?

Smell Gas in Mazzuchelli Hall? No need to worry according to RA Michelle Calvert. She stated the following in an email sent to all Mazzuchelli Residents, "If you see/smell gas in the hallway or in your rooms, do not fret! Physical Plant is using a gas-powered saw in the convent (the floor below us)."

Hope my fellow Mazzuchelli Residents aren't disturbed by this, but I would like to thank Michelle for the warning.

The Cost of Campus Housing Follow-Up

Last week I posted about a price difference between freshman housing in Centennial and returning students housing, as the cost is more expensive for returning students. I contacted Residence Life via email about this and have yet to receive a response. We will just have wait and see if they have anything to say about it.

Don't Vote Unless...

I received an email Tuesday from one of the RAs on my floor about a video that we [residents on her floor] should look at. Everyone should look at it though, so I'll provide the link below. It is a "Get out and vote" video basically, but with a number of celebrities participating in the video. It's about a 5 minute public service announcement starting out with celebrities saying you shouldn't vote, don't bother...but then it switches around and tells the viewer that "you should vote if you care about this issue, etc." The PSA also reminds people that they have to register to vote and that they should get their friends to vote as well.

Here's the link:
Five Friends Vote (Uncensored)

Also, Resident Student Association sent out an email regarding voter registration information.

Elmhurst Also Encounters Hate Crime

As many of you know, a few weeks ago a hate crime against African-Americans occured at the Priory's Aquinas Residence Hall. Now at nearby Elmhurst College, a hate crime has also occured with a Muslim student who was attacked in the bathroom. For the full story visit the Chicago Tribune website.

We all just need to be aware what is going on around us, as we all know Dominican security is not top-notch.

RSA's Root Beer Keg Party

Before Resident Student Association's general meeting tomorrow (that is Wednesday at 10 P.M.), there will be a root beer keg party and a Twister competition starting at 9 P.M. The root beer keg party is definitely something new...RSA hasn't done this before from my recollection.

I would check it out if I have the time to. I'm wondering if RSA organizes some (or maybe most?) of their events based on resident feedback or just what the Executive Board thinks would be a good idea? I'm not sure if the root beer keg party is being put on by the Hall Reps. I'm just going by a RSA email sent Tuesday morning (10/14).

Sounds like a cool thing to check out. I remember last year, RSA organized a s'mores event outside the Commons where residents toasted marshmallows at the grills outside and made s'mores. I personally enjoyed that event. But I like s'mores, so it was a no-brainer for me.

No TV Service in Res Halls Friday

The Dominican community received an email (5:33 PM Tuesday) from Jill Albin-Hill from IT to notify everyone that there will be network outages this Friday due to there being no classes that day. Therefore, perfect time to perform needed system maintenance. What surprised me a bit was that television service would be down in the residence halls.

Here is that portion of the email:
In addition, our TV service provider, will be working to relocate the entire system on the Main Campus to the IT Server Room. This will result in NO TELEVISION service for the Residence Halls and possible intermittent outages for the TV’s in the Library.

Now, I don't mind that TV service will be down - I don't have many "Must See" shows on my TV-watching list and none are on Friday. But I wonder how long the TV service will be down because it doesn't say so...all of Friday or just a part of the day? The network outages will occur in the morning according to the email.

From the email:
7:00 AM – 8:00 AM: Email
7:30 AM – 8:30 AM: Intermittent short network outages (1 minute or less per server) for all applications and network storage locations
8:30 AM – 9:00 AM: myDU

Poor Centennial Hall

Attention Angry Residents of Centennial Hall:

Please do not punch holes in anymore of our hallways. We are all now getting charged $20 per resident according to an email sent out by Residence Hall Director Katie Kramer last week.

Voting and out-of-state residents

I went home over this weekend and with the elections fast approaching, I was not surprised to find mail sent home that listed voting sites and where to vote if you're registered to vote and wish to vote early. The dates if you want to vote early in Illinois are between October 13 through Oct. 30th. Unfortunately there are only certain sites that allow early voting - the town hall in my hometown is one of them.

I've already registered to vote at the DMV near where I live, and since I live half an hour away from home, I don't have to go through the absentee ballot process. This is the first time I'll be voting since I registered in 2005 after the presidential election. So I am pretty excited about it mostly because this election is catching a lot more people's interest than previous elections (considering its historic nature).

I've talked with a few residents who live out of state and they have either received their absentee ballot or are planning to get it done. Each state has different requirements for absentee voters, but in general, "if you're away at college, you can almost always vote by absentee ballot." ( via http://www.longdistancevoter.org/absentee_voting_rules ).

I'm wondering how many out-of-state residents at DU are getting involved in this election. Is anyone encountering any obstacles or is voting by absentee ballot easy to do?

After all the hassle...

I recently got a new laptop and the McAfee Antivirus Software that came with it expired this past Saturday (10/11). I went home over the weekend and installed this antivirus software recommended to me (Avira) and I paid for a year's subscription (for better protection). It worked fine until I came back on campus Sunday night and found out that only McAfee, Symantec, Norton or AVG are recognized as valid antivirus programs (in order to use your computer in the residence halls).

Now, I knew the only real solution was to uninstall the antivirus I took the effort to pay for and install Symantec which is provided free by DU. I know this since I've had Symantec in previous years at Dominican. But I didn't want to jump into action and uninstall an antivirus program I paid for. Though it wasn't much compared to other antivirus programs that overprice; I hate paying for something and not being able to use it.

It turns out that I was right in my assumption (after getting it checked out today) - I needed to uninstall Avira and download Symantec. But once I graduate from Dominican, I'm going back to Avira since my impression is that Symantec is only available for free for students (and the rest of the DU community). The lesson: don't bother trying to install antivirus software that isn't on the list of Dominican's accepted antivirus programs. I'm still unhappy about it, but at least the solution was simple.

Hookas on Campus

Today Residence Life sent out an email regarding the use of Hookas on campus because this has become a big issue. Many students this year have been using the Hookas outside in the mini-quad. Just for clarification, according to the email, the policy is that you can use the Hookas in the designated smoking areas, but they cannot be stored in your room.

In my opinion, the storage of the Hookas is silly. Looks like you better keep the Hooka in your car.

Different Students Living Environments

This is a photo essay I have created for our Journalism class. It is entitled "Different Students Living Environments." The photo captions can be found below the slide show. Enjoy.



Upperclassmen are always fighting over Centennial Suites during the housing lottery because of the spacious, apartment style rooms. Suites consist of four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a living area with refrigerator, microwave, and cabinets. Seen here are roommates (from left to right) Crystal Gant, Tina Calcagno, Melanie Bonifacio, Lisa Julkowski, Lindsey Trent, and Jane Killmar in their living area on Thursday night.

Junior Andrew Infanger resides on campus in a Mazuchelli Hall single. He has successfully converted this former convent room, into a messy, jam-packed, college dorm room, which he calls home. Andrew is seen here sitting at his computer desk on a normal Thursday night after returning from a midnight security shift.

Andrew’s room is jammed packed with his belongings, as everything from his bed to his sink is in one single room. His closet is large in comparison to other dorm rooms, but is no exception to the tight space. Storing his bike, clothing, shoes, and even extension cord there is not unusual to dorm living.

Opposite of Andrew’s cramped space, junior Lisanne Scannichio’s living area is very spacious. She rents out this home just past the CTA Green Line in Oak Park with her sister, who is also a college student at DePaul University. “I love my new home. I lived in the dorm the past few years and now I feel like I am finally on my own,” she said.

Inside Lisanne’s house there is plenty of living space with a large living room, full-size kitchen, two bathrooms, and two bedrooms. Pictured here is one section of her kitchen cabinets, which provides more than enough space for her snacks and supplies. Lisanne even has four empty shelves ready for the next time she goes grocery shopping.

Freshman students must adjust to sharing a small dorm room with a stranger as part of the “college experience”. First semester freshman roommates Marissa Surma and Amy Miller pose in their Power Hall double on Wednesday night. “Even though our room is small, I love having a new home away from home,” Surma said.

Unlike Scannichio’s large and part empty kitchen cabinets, Surma and Miller each have their own set of plastic food drawers. Shown here is Miller’s drawers complete with peanut butter, microwave soup, and dishes. As most of their meals are eaten in the cafeteria, they say this small space is adequate.

Junior Lauren Ruebe moved into her own apartment off of North Ave in Melrose Park on September 13, after she became unhappy because of the cramped and outdated living environment in Power Hall. According to Ruebe, the best part of her apartment is the bathroom because she does not have to share it. Ruebe is seen here putting on her make-up Tuesday morning before class.

Senior Dan Humphreys and Junior Andrew Bednarczyk share a dorm room on the second floor of Centennial Hall. Friday night they play a video game of Madden football on their XBOX 360, as they look in opposite directions. According to Bednarczyk, the XBOX 360 is an important element in their room.

Along with the XBOX 360, Humphreys and Bednarczyk say that another important element of their room is their two televisions. The spacious Centennial dorm room allows them to do this. “The best part is that we can watch the Cubs game and play video games at the same time,” Humphreys said.

Inside Mazzuchelli Hall

This is a photo essay assignment for my Convergent Journalism class. The photo slide show features pictures from the fourth floor of Mazzuchelli Hall, the new wing of residential rooms.

1. The hallway of Mazzuchelli -- a few feet away from the entrance to the new wing for resident students on a Saturday afternoon. While the inside of the rooms were completely renovated for students – the hallway has remained the same. According to Sr. Crapo, the fourth floor used to be one big room in 1922 before it was divided up into individual rooms for the sisters.

2. Valerie Antunes works on her list of internships that she plans to take over the summer on a Saturday afternoon. She lives in room 481 on the fourth floor of Mazzuchelli Hall. She says that the reason why she chose to live on Mazzuchelli was due to living at the Priory last year. She didn’t like having to rely on the shuttle to get to and from the Main Campus.

3. Room 460 resident Lia Rainey, senior, is fixing her diorama which she did “for the hell of it” She’s a Studio Art and Sculpture double major with an Art History minor. Her diorama is a compare and contrast between cubicle and landscape. She chose Mazzuchelli Hall because she liked how the rooms looked – i.e. the amount of wall space and the walk-in closet. Also, during the showing of rooms last spring, the sisters showed off the rooms, which Rainey appreciated. Since the sisters previously occupied the space, Rainey thought “it won’t be dirty” because of that.

4. Lia Rainey is surfing through facebook.com on her laptop Tuesday night after her night class. She is excited to find that some photos of her semester-long London trip (from August 2007 to December 2007) have been posted by fellow participants. Since she didn’t have a camera with her during the school Study Abroad trip, Rainey asked others to take pictures for her.

5. On a Tuesday night, Michelle Nowak, junior transfer student and room 477 resident, is showing a picture of her sister who she doesn’t see as often now that she’s at Dominican. She chose Mazzuchelli because she heard that Mazzuchelli Hall was going to be a new housing option. Nowak thought it would be interesting to live in Mazzuchelli. Due to the housing shortage and being a transfer (low priority on housing lottery list), she knew that her other option would be to live at the Priory. She’s grateful to get to live in Mazzuchelli and not have to commute from the Priory to Main Campus.

6. Michelle Nowak is holding a tag graffiti painting that her friend, Adam who is a tattoo artist, painted for her. He usually does tattoos, but Nowak encouraged him to do this painting. She likes to look at it during study breaks and try to find Adam’s name, which is hidden amongst all of the swirls in the painting. She also has a body tattoo of the cherry blossom on the painting.

7. The staircase leading down to the third floor of Mazzuchelli Hall. The sisters occupy the third and second floors of Mazzuchelli Hall. “We’re lucky we still have the Priory,” Sr. Jeanne Crapo, University Archivist, said. But this works out for the best since the number of sisters has been dwindling in recent years anyway. Currently, there are 16 sisters living on the second and third floors of the hall. Sr. Crapo currently lives on the second floor of Mazzuchelli Hall, but she has lived on the fourth floor as well. Last year, the fourth floor was divided up between faculty offices and rooms. With the addition of Parmer Hall, offices previously on the fourth floor have been moved to Parmer.

8. One of the main reasons why Lia Rainey chose Mazzuchelli is because she “loved the wall space”. The slanted ceiling offers plenty of wall space to put up postcard sized pictures, which were mostly bought from London during her Study Abroad trip there last year. She found the pictures in a shoebox at a London thrift store. Near the top is a map of London that Rainey used during her trip.

9. On a Saturday afternoon, the mirror in Lia Rainey’s room shows a glimpse of the green tapestry that she put up over her window at the beginning of the year. The room on the fourth floor did not have blinds on the windows at the start of the year, but recently Maintenance came in and inserted the blinds on to the windows. Rainey still keeps the tapestry over her window and admits she didn’t notice the blinds had been added until someone pointed it out to her.

10. There is an empty room in Mazzuchelli Hall that looks like it was used as a kitchen area at one point in time. There are some “tiny rooms” according to Sr. Crapo that are just too small, so they don’t end up being used at living spaces. Looking inside of the room, there were a lot of cabinets meant for food storage. It is surprising to see an empty room considering the housing shortage. The housing situation is getting worse considering this year’s freshman class has 418 freshman residents according to Donna Carroll, Dominican University president. Compared to 296 freshman residents for the class of 2009, this increase can not be overlooked.

The Cost of Campus Housing

I was recently looking at the prices of on campus housing on the Residence Life homepage and I noticed a problem. The housing cost for a Centennial Double for a freshman is $4,680, yet the same exact room for a returning student is $4,840. Is this just a typo or are we really paying more?

Avoid the Shuttle.

As we all know, or should know, Dominican offers a "courtesy shuttle service," which is very limited. It will bring you back and forth from the Priory and Main Campus, as well as take you to the CTA Green Line upon request, on the hour, after 7:00 p.m.

From my experiences, this is shuttle is not very reliable, which causes me to recommend avoiding the shuttle at all costs. If you expect to get anywhere on time, it is best to find your own transportation, especially in the evening. I really hate to turn students off from using the shuttle, as I am a security student worker, but I have seen first-hand how this is a "courtesy" yet unhelpful service.

Food court style dining?

Though it's still years from becoming a reality; there is a good chance that the DU dining experience will change in the near future. The change, according to Amy McCormack, is an expansion of the kitchen/dining area to allow for more space and have a more "food court style" sort of look.

Even with Chartwells coming as the new food service just last year and the new look; it's not the end for dining area improvements. I'm glad that the university is looking to further improve the dining facilities, though it's too bad that I won't be able to experience it myself. I do hope the expansion of the dining area does become a reality. Residents, the biggest group using the dining area on a frequent basis, have something to look forward to...

Housing - it may take a while

According to Amy McCormack, Senior Vice President for Administration and Business Affairs (at the last SGA meeting), on the Campus Master Plan; the housing situation will be alleviated through a new residence hall between 2012-2015. It's the third phase of the master plan and currently, the plan is in its updating phase (2008-2013). With Parmer Hall being a big part of the previous 5-year plan, the university is looking at what is the next step for the next five years. McCormack said that housing will be dealt with on a long-term and short-term basis; but with the housing shortage now - McCormack understands that the plan for housing "needs to be accelerated."

Since I'm a senior, this won't affect me and I'm glad I was able to get to live on the Main Campus during my four years here. But for freshmen, sophomores and juniors who plan to be residents next year and after that - the housing situation will only get worse. That's the way I see it. I mean, there are only so many options that are already available - how far can we stretch the available space on campus for rooms? Will the Bon Villa apartments become more successful over time?

This, of course, will all depend on future incoming classes and how many freshmen want to be residents...

This year's freshman class is the biggest yet. While this may be a good sign for university growth, it doesn't bode well for guaranteed housing on campus.

Text Message in an Emergency

At the last SGA meeting, Pamela Johnson, Vice President for Enrollment, went over the 2005 student satisfaction survey. An interesting thing to note was that the preferred mode of communication among residents in the case of an emergency was text message (36.2%). Email (28.2%) and broadcast voicemail messages (19%) came in second and third.

I think that this makes the most sense since text messages can be received the fastest with almost everyone these days owning a cell phone. Though for those who don't have cell phones, I think that voicemail through their room phone would be better. For me at least, I sometimes forget to check email, so an important emergency message may be missed if the student doesn't have immediate access to a computer or isn't in the habit of regularly checking their DU email.

According to Johnson, the crisis communication team is working on the technical issues with communicating with the entire Dominican community in the event of an emergency.

A Haunting Experience with CSA's Haunted Tours

Commuter Student Association will be hosting Haunted Tours (an annual event) in the spirit of Halloween. The Haunted Tours is a tour that students can go on throughout different parts of the school. The tour guide tells a ghost story connected with different areas or rooms around campus. The tours will take place on Thursday, October 30th. CSA is looking for assistance from anyone interested in helping out - just email them at csa@dom.edu for more details.

Video Gaming

After talking to a fellow resident student, the trend of video games on campus came to my attention. Many students on campus play video games in their free time, from the newest Playstation 3 consoles to the old-school Nintendo 64. Students even have the opportunity to play XBOX Live if they register their console with IT, but this can only be played on the weekends because it can slow down the Internet. Students Drew Bednarczyk and Dan Humphreys are shown here playing their XBOX live on a Friday night.

Unfair?

To follow up on the Homecoming Res Life issues, as I have been posting about, I want to share with you a complaint from my fellow classmate.

I was talking with my classmate today, who was very upset because she had gotten "written up" by Res Life for underage drinking, when she was not even present in the room. She lives in a Centennial Suite where her roommates were getting a bit rowdy, so she went into her single room and went to sleep. A few hours later the RAs came in and "wrote up" her roommates. Now, this morning she has also received an email saying that she has a conduct hearing for underage drinking.

Ultimately, she was not doing anything wrong, so is this fair that she got "written up"? Is the system flawed? Is this just a routine for RAs to accuse everyone who lives in the room?

Overboard?

When I walked into the residence halls on Saturday night I was bombarded by RA's. They surrounded the Coughlin Commons and even had an extra desk in front of Centennial. I understand it was the night of the Homecoming dance, but I still tend to think this is a little overboard. Many students go off campus because they know the policies are strictly enforced. Every RA was on Duty...but is this really necessary?

Showers on Power 2

Just going on Megan's posts about the showers in Mazzuchelli Hall - I just wanted to add that the Power 2 showers in the women's restroom (in the East Wing) have poor water pressure as well. Even though the Power 2 showers aren't new, that is still no excuse for the quality. I usually avoid taking a shower in Power 2 and go to Coughlin 2 instead. And it's not just the poor water pressure on Power 2, the water is cold as well. And no matter how you turn the dial, it's still one temperature: cold.

One weekday morning a few weeks ago, I took a shower there and I was worried I'd catch a cold (after I just got over one). Maybe if I waited for about 15 mins. or so, it would have warmed up? Though that is the common rule of thumb among residents, it doesn't help when you're in a rush (which I was that morning).

So new or old -- it doesn't seem to make a difference.

Homecoming Res Life Policies

I made a post last week about the Homecoming residence hall policies. I thought I would follow-up with details. More information can be found at the Residence Life website.

Quiet Hours:
Friday, Oct 3 12 a.m. - 7 a.m.
Saturday, Oct 4 2 a.m. - 7 a.m.

Under 21 Alcohol Policy:
If all assigned residents to a residence hall room are under 21, the possession or consumption of alcohol is prohibited within that room at all times regardless of the age of any guest. Further, any person (student or guest) under 21 may not be present in a room where alcohol is being consumed, unless it is the student’s place of residence.

See my pain...

I just wanted to follow-up to the last post with a visualization of the Mazzuchelli showers, so everyone can see my pain. This is what happens when you turn the hot water on in both of our two new showers. How is anyone supposed to shower here?

I should just shower in a sink.

I am a resident of Mazzuchelli Hall and we recently got new showers. I thought "Great! New, clean, unused showers", but I am sadly disappointed. We are better off with the old ones, as the water pressure is so terrible it just drips and drips out of the shower head. Horrible. My fellow residents couldn't agree more. As I showered yesterday resident Kelsy Holloway asked me over the wall, "Do you take long showers because this water is barely coming out." Too bad my shower had the same exact problem.

Hate-Free Zone Signs

Last Monday, at the Priory's Aquinas Hall, there was an act of hate on one of the floors at the Aquinas Residence Hall. The act of hate was in the form of graffiti painted on a wall. As a result, at least on one floor of Aquinas, residents were encouraged to pick up "hate-free zone" signs to tape on their doors. This was a choice offered to residents just to reinforce the message that you choose if you're for or against acts of hate. According to one person who lives on the third floor, everyone on her floor had taped the "hate-free zone" signs to their doors.

Laundry Washed Out in Res. Halls

One resident who lives on the fourth floor of Power expressed her frustration with the laundry room on the fourth floor. In her words, the laundry machines are "a piece of [expletive]." This year, there is a price increase on doing a load of laundry - from $1 to $1.25 (an increase by $0.25). While it may not seem like much, one has to factor in the rising tuition costs, so an increase in other areas of university expenses isn't welcome to cash-strapped college students.

RA Rule-Breakers

As I walked through the Coughlin Commons yesterday in route to my room, an RA and his commuter friend just walked right though the Commons without showing their ID's or signing in the commuter. This is frustrating to me, as the RA is a university employee, and is not even following his own rule. Does he think that he is special and can get away with anything because he is an RA? This makes me think, do all RAs act this way? Do they break other rules, like underage drinking on campus, or are they truly the good-natured students they claim to be?

RSA Meeting This Week

There will be a Resident Student Association meeting this week, Wednesday at 10 PM at the Priory. Meetings typically take place at the Main Campus's Coughlin Commons Multipurpose Room (CCMPR), but with the increase of residents at the Priory, it is only fair to have some meetings take place at the Priory.

For those without a car, the shuttle will be available to pick people up from the Main Campus at 9:30 PM to drive over to the Priory.

Voting at Dominican

For any residents - in-state and especially out-of-state - there was voter registration for the presidential election last week. The League of Women Voters conducted the registration, and they may come back Wednesday of this week, according to Megan McCabe, president of College Democrats. Though it is uncertain that there will be further voter registration opportunities at DU, the deadline to register is this Friday.

Lights out at the Priory

There have been issues at the Priory with lighting. For residents who live at the Priory, if they're coming back from Main Campus after a night studying, for example; they don't feel safe in the unlit area outside. Some students feel that Physical Plant is neglecting the Priory compared to the Main Campus when it comes to having enough lighting at night at the Priory. While most of the activity happens at the Main Campus, there is a growing number of residents living at the Priory with the housing crunch - shouldn't a change be made already? Or is it in the works?

Homeward Bound

Recently when speaking with freshman resident student Marissa Surma she mentioned the one thing she didn't like about Dominican so far, is how everyone goes home on the weekend. I understand exactly what she means, as I witness the parking lot empty out weekend after weekend. Does the social life just turn everyone away? Or is home just a comfort zone that everyone likes to resort to on the weekends?

Resident turned Commuter

At this Monday's SGA meeting, it was brought up by Keaton Gillogly, Commuter Student Association Rep, that some of his friends "don't feel welcome."

The reason? Last year, they were residents, but this year they're commuters. And no matter if you were a resident one year - rules are rules. Any commuters or guests have to sign in at the Coughlin Commons desk and give their driver's license away - no matter how long they plan to be in the residence halls. While this measure is a good thing for safety and security within the residence halls, residents who become commuters - will see what commuters go through. According to Gillogly, commuters "feel segregated" when visiting their resident friends. For a 20 minute or less trip to a friend's room - you still have to sign in.

Homecoming Reminders

Homecoming is right around the corner, which causes much excitement, but also many concerns for the residence life staff, as Rob Babcock expressed with me recently. He said that resident students should keep in mind the alcohol, visitation, and quiet hours procedures to avoid any problems during this fun-filled week.

Contact Residence Life at x6217 for more information

The Famous Commuter Hang-Out

As a current resident student, I have observed that many commuters seem to congregate in the same area everyday. At any time a whole group of people can be seen socializing in the clock lobby right outside the social hall. As a resident student, I am just curious as to what is so special about this frequently populated area??

Student Involvement trying to include commuters?

As I walked down the main stairs in Lewis today, I decided to make a stop and look at one cluster of posters. I noticed that there were not one, but two posters relating to commuters ONLY. They were both just "get together' events, but is this an attempt to get commuters more involved in on-campus activities?

Go Green!

The garbage can in the Power 2 Lounge is filled past the brim at 1:47 PM Monday, September 22. The "go green" sign seems to lose significance against it. And it's pass the trash. As I'm sure other residents can attest to - it's not the first time signs in the Residence Halls lose key letters and obscure the message's friendly reminder. I'm wondering if the "p" just came loose accidentally or someone took it off. I'd like to think the best of people and say the "p" came loose by itself. Either way, no one can deny that it is amusing to see. Laughter is the best medicine after all.

Oh, and I checked shortly before 5 PM the same day and found the garbage was taken out.

Spaghetti Night in Centennial Kitchen

Bring a plate tomorrow, Tuesday (9/23) at 8 PM for Spaghetti Night in Centennial Kitchen. It is hosted by the Resident Student Association Hall Representatives.

Hall Reps are residents who signed up at the first RSA meeting to represent the residence halls through doing the bulletin boards (on each floor), putting together events and other responsibilities. Though they are not on the RSA Executive Board, they contribute to making residents feel more welcome through events such as Spaghetti Night.

This isn't the first time free food was offered via Centennial Kitchen...it surely won't be the last.

Security in Res Halls

Is their any security in the res halls? Can just anyone walk by without showing their ID? Chances are yes. The residence hall procedure is the most relaxed security system I have ever witnessed. Yes, students can only have one entrance to the resident halls, which can be quite inconvenient but is probably safe. This one entrance really has no effect though when just anyone can walk by because the student worker can't do anything. Maybe a real security guard should be posted there?

Look for Wednesday's issue of the Dominican Star with a story on the positive light on the res hall security, which I do not necessarily agree with.

Trayless Tuesdays

Anyone who wants to eat at the dining hall on Tuesdays will have to contend with having no trays. At first, I thought it was a one-time thing as I came in to eat dinner one Tuesday a few weeks ago, but it looks like it's something that Chartwells is trying out in the dining hall. I'm not sure what is the reasoning behind this, but as expected, not too many people are thrilled about having no trays. At least on the bright side of things, it is only in effect one day a week. People may have to make multiple trips to the dining hall if they want soup or what not, but I hope this new development serves a purpose.

Late night wake up call

Past 1am on Wednesday night - the fire alarm rang in the Residence Halls. One of the downsides to living in the Res. Halls is fire alarms - which largely seem to be false fire alarms pulled by students. I do not know what caused the fire alarm Wednesday night, but so far, it has been the first fire alarm I've experienced so late at night. I had no idea what to do - and looking back on it, it was definitely a false fire alarm and I should have just stayed in my room. The noise was so loud though - it was either wait it out or try going back to sleep. I went outside via the back door of Power - only a few people did the same - with a crate keeping the door open because otherwise we would be locked out and have to walk the long way back to Lewis in PJs. Who would want to do that?

Today I heard that some either stayed in their rooms or slept through it. All in all, I hope that this will be the last false fire alarm for some time - or at least until the end of this semester. Is that too much to ask?

Pool in the Res Halls

Many students want to take a break out of their busy schedules and relax. One way for resident students to do this is play pool in the Coughlin Commons. Junior Andre Burrell plays a game Wednesday night with friends.

Wireless Res. Halls?

Wireless in the Residence Halls: Unlikely or Potential Reality?

Campus-wide wireless internet access is a possibility in the next five years. The question is will it be worth having wireless internet in the Residence Halls? Currently there are numerous designated places that have wireless internet access. The key concern is where students would benefit most from wireless internet access. Several students and faculty put forth their views on wireless internet as the technological landscape changes – sometimes too fast to follow.

Last year, the student IT committee created an online IT survey that tried to gauge feedback from Dominican students about technological initiatives and student usage levels. According to Jill Albin-Hill, Director of Information Technology, 657 students responded to the survey with 37% being residents and 63% being commuters.

For the “Where would you like to see wireless accessibility on campus?” question, residence hall rooms had the highest percentage with 38.8% while the second highest was 36.6 % for classrooms. Also, residence hall lounges came in at 10.9%, though it was beat out by the ‘Other’ category, (12%) which Albin-Hill believes refers to outside wireless access.

Regarding wireless internet access in the classrooms, Albin-Hill thinks this may be more beneficial since “all students would benefit” from the access not just residents. Another factor is how faculty teach their classes and if there is a need for students to bring their laptops to class.

Campus-wide wireless internet access is in the five year technology strategic plan, according to Albin-Hill. IT is looking into how to best integrate technology and where to take technology at DU based on where technology will go in the near future. For a wireless campus, it will cost around $40,000 according to Albin-Hill. A main priority for wireless internet is insuring that Clean Access Agent will work with it for network security purposes. Albin-Hill wants to make sure that IT has the capacity to handle wireless internet and maintain network security.

According to Rob Babcock, Director of Residence Life, he sees it as IT “having the ability to shut someone down.” During Babcock’s seven years working in Residence Life, he has seen his share of students not using the school-provided internet access appropriately. “We have had situations where students acted unethically and/or illegally with their school-provided internet access, so IT wants to have the option to shut it down if necessary,” says Babcock. One example took place three or four years ago where resident student used the school-provided internet access in their room to run an online business. Another resident student shared large files through the internet connection.

Over the last six years though, IT was able to “increase university internet capacity by 800%” according to Albin-Hill. This means that there has been a significant increase in internet bandwidth since the time that Albin-Hill started working at Dominican in August 2003. Even with this, IT is looking into continual improvement of the technology on campus. One of the main focuses is making Clean Access Agent more flexible with mobile devices like cell phones. To contact IT, go to: Information Technology website.

According to Babcock, wireless internet access in the rooms issue is not brought up often – only once or twice a year. “ It comes up from time to time, but I wouldn’t label it a ‘hot’ issue,” Babcock said. To contact Residence Life, visit their myDU page: Residence Life website.

Steve Bala, a junior resident and a member of last year’s student IT committee, does not think having wireless internet in the residence halls is the best decision. At least five to eight wireless routers must be placed in each residence hall and residents have to “worry about people hacking their signal, viruses and possible corruption” Bala said.

Though Coughlin Hall has an easily accessible drop ceiling while other residence halls like Centennial or Power Halls have plastered ceilings. One would need to “knock down a wall or ceiling” to get the router placed. Also, residents have to contend with drop signals – similar to the poor cell phone signal receptivity in certain areas on campus. If there is a router problem, someone would have to go up to the ceiling to fix the problem, which is time-consuming.

Jaron Salazar, a sophomore and Resident Student Association president, says that the Residence Halls going wireless is an issue that “Residence Life has on the drawing board.” Last year, the idea for wireless internet in the halls was thrown out there. This involves addressing issues on how much it would cost, how far wireless would reach and how everyone would adapt to the change. There was an idea involving extension of the wireless internet access from the Cyber Café to the residence halls or if “a wireless transmitter closer to the dorms” is a better option. Salazar thinks that wireless would be “more beneficial than being stuck in one room” and it will allow residents to “be more mobile.”

Amy Preston, junior and RSA secretary agrees, “It will add another convenience to residents” and provide “increased mobility” whereas previously residents “were stuck at their desks.” To contact Resident Student Association, you can visit their myDU page: Resident Student Association.

“I think hard line (Ethernet cable) is better than wireless because you’re not relying on the signal,” Bala said. If getting a good wireless signal for cell phone within the halls is not easy, then what does this say about wireless internet access? “It would require a different set of rules compared to what we have right now,” says Bala.

“Basically what it comes down to is time, money and money” Bala said. Despite the pros and cons of wireless internet access, if the five-year technology strategic plan works out; then the whole campus will be wireless – Residence Halls included.

For more related links:

IT Policy Manual

To voice any student concerns, go to the Dean of Students Office.

Cliques in the Dining Hall

With the tables at the Dining Hall only seating six people, some students try to rectify the situation. Because how fair is it if more than six people want to be together with friends (usually during dinnertime), but the table is filled? So, the next best option is to put two tables together, though Chartwells staff have told a number of students not to do that. So what is the solution then? Sit at two separate tables i.e. the one or two people who came too late to grab a seat...should they just sit at a nearby table? Is this even a big problem at the Dining Hall? I know from friends that eventually during the course of the meal, the staff will tell people to separate the tables.

Is it wrong to accomodate others who want to sit at the same table? With limited seating at each table, it seems to encourage cliques or only a small group of friends to sit together. I'd personally prefer if all the cliquing stayed in middle school and high school. Though cliques are unavoidable no matter where you go, wouldn't it be nice if it stayed out of the dining hall? A tall order, sure, but just something to think about...

Stars on Wheels

The Commuter Student newsletter, Stars on Wheels, is looking for submissions for the next issue, according to myDU. If interested, contact Bill Dlugokienski at wdlugokienski@dom.edu for more information.

Living in Mazzuchelli

I visited a room in Mazzuchelli Hall since I wanted to get a sense of how the rooms looked like. The rooms were converted from offices or nuns' rooms starting this school year, and according to Mazzuchelli resident, Lia Rainey, there are more pros than cons with living in this new wing on the fourth floor.

It's "the best place she's ever lived" in the Residence Halls. The main thing Rainey was excited about was the big closet - which is basically a walk-in closet with a rack and five shelves of storage space. She says she'll use it as a guest room when someone visits. Seeing the closet for myself, I think it's adequate to say that it's a good size for that. She "loves the wall space" and her windows are soundproof when closed. This helps since her room is located near the docking bay and it is always noisy when the truck comes in the morning.

These are just a few positive things about Mazzuchelli. Overall, Rainey, a senior herself, thinks that senior residents should have first selection of the Mazzuchelli rooms since for seniors who want singles, Mazzuchelli is a good option to look at.

Residents Get Twisted

Wednesday, September 17 Resident Student Association is sponsoring a Twister Tournament in the Coughlin Commons Multipurpose Room at 9 p.m. The tournament will be followed by a general RSA meeting at 10 p.m. where you can share your opinions and concerns.

Locked out!

The Residence Halls on the Main Campus can only be entered via one way - through the Coughlin Commons. Now, you can exit through various other doors, but you have to be lucky to enter in through one of the 'shortcut' doors.

One example that I know of is the back door from Power Hall leading to the Sisters' Parking lot and further down, Lewis Hall and Parmer at the end of the walkway. This door is exit-only and if you want to enter through it to get to your room faster - you have to hope someone is near the door and willing to let you in. Otherwise, it's through the Coughlin Commons since - due to security reasons - you should enter through there in order to show your ID at the desk. And that is the only place that residents should really enter to get to their room - no matter how much the 'shortcut' way is more appealing though it requires a bit of luck.

Why not, according to resident student Nadya Remy, open up the door on the 2nd floor of Power that used to lead to faculty offices? Last year, those offices were converted to rooms for residents to relieve the housing shortage. But as a result, that door is completely closed off both ways. You can't enter it to get to your room (convenient if you have a room on Power's 2nd floor) or even to exit the Residence Halls and go into Power...without having to go outside. If it is possible to do an exit-only door with that back door previously mentioned - why not with this one? As far as I know, you don't need to show ID to leave the Residence Halls...

Thoughts?

Maintenance waits till morn'

When it's midnight and your toilet clogs, your sink overflows, or your door won't close what can you do? Maintenance is on call via switchboard, but are you really going to get a response at that hour? Chances are no...and even if you do, they probably will not have the resources to fix your problem. Looks like your best bet is to put in a maintenance request and wait till the morning. Should this really be the case?

Food service: Thumbs up or down?

It's all about opinion. Was Chartwells better toward the end of the last school year? Or at least had they come up with a better system to handle the volume of students/faculty/visitors, etc.? It seems like this year, the long lines are back and there is the question of how is the food service working to relieve this problem. A key issue is the number of staff at the Cyber Cafe. Sometimes there isn't enough - when it would help to have more people at the sub station taking sub/pizza orders. On Sunday around dinner time (Sept. 7), the line of people was short at the Cyber, but the wait for making an order and even to pay at the register took longer than expected. Sometimes, it just looks like there are not enough people staffing at the Cyber. What are other's thoughts on it?

Attention Commuters: Closed Roads from Flooding

In result of all the rain and flooding this weekend, many roads have been closed which may affect your morning commute. Also, some classes may be canceled due to flooding, so be sure to check your Dominican email account.

Visit the Chicago Tribune traffic website for more information.

Missing screens

There was recently (Sept. 12) an email from Residence Life about residents losing or breaking screens in some of the rooms. Since a large number of residents need to replace their window screens, physical plant will charge extra (a minimum of $100) for any replacements starting October 1, 2008. Residents are told not to remove their screens as well. Is this price fair? Or is it necessary considering how many residents are requesting screen replacement?

Volunteers Needed!

Calling all DU Residents...this morning Residence Hall Director Evy Koutzas sent out an emailing regarding emergency volunteers for the River Forest Police Department. With all of the recent rain, the RFPD needs all the help it can get sand-bagging near the corner of Chicago and Thatcher. Call switchboard for more information.

Roof is official

Today a campus-wide email was sent by Amy McCormack, Senior Vice President for Administration and Business Affairs, regarding the roof (5th floor) of the parking garage, which stated that it is offiically open for use during the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Will this small parking relief really be helpful??

For more info, visit the Dominican University website.

Worth the wait?

The food service at the Cyber Cafe is not exactly down to a science. Considering this is Chartwell's second year at Dominican, this shouldn't be a surprise. Either way, this hasn't stopped some from expressing their issues with the service at Cyber. A big issue is the long lines at certain times during the week - 1 PM on weekdays for example when the Cyber opens the meal exchange option, which all residents have though commuters can request it if wanted. One person came to the Cyber around 4:45 PM to get dinner, but it took her until 5:30 to order her chicken wrap.

Another common issue, which I've also experienced, is inavailability of food items. One person was planning to order a turkey sub, but by the time it was her turn to order, she found out that there was no turkey available. A few times last year, I found that there was no lettuce, tomato or wheat bread to name some. Wraps were frequently out as well. There was also a period of time when pizza was not on the menu because the pizza oven was out of order. Recently, I had to wait longer for pizza at the Cyber due to the dough not being readily available.

The Dining Hall also has the wait issue - when dinner starts at 5 PM weekdays. The key just may be avoiding the 'rush times' when going to eat on campus. But for those who can't avoid it (i.e. a 5:30 class), that may not be an option.

Here's the mail...it never fails!

Many resident studnets walk by their mailboxes multiple times a day, but never even bother to open it. Other resident students open their box at least once a day, only to find nothing. Do they even serve a purpose anymore? Most students communicate with their friends and family through email or the phone these days. If mail is used it is mainly for online ordering or care packages, which are picked up in the mailroom, so should residents even still have those tiny mailboxes?

More Officers in RSA

Resident Student Association has more officers this fall. It's not just President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. Though last year, they added the Director of Publicity position (this year, currently unfilled); there are quite a few additions. The new officer positions are: Road Trips, Community Service and Spiritual Committee officers. Previously, Road Trips, Service and Spiritual were additional responsibilities for the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. The question is: what was the motive behind this? One explanation is that it is not easy successfully managing committees in addition to executive board duties. From being involved in RSA, I got the sense that some committees just weren't as successful as they could have been. So this could be a good thing for the executive board and residents alike. More focus given to a committee like Road Trips equals more and better road trips possibly?

Parking in parking garage

Though the parking garage was meant to provide more parking spaces for the DU community, parking is still a prevalent issue. Since last year, residents have been parking their cars in the parking garage overnight. After all, it is convenient, though since residents live on campus and may not drive as often as commuters - it is almost like they're using it as 'a storage facility' as some have coined it.

But of course, there are two sides to every issue. There's a chance that there aren't any other parking spaces available and the only place is at the parking garage. According to Norah Collins at Monday's SGA meeting, as a courtesy to commuters, residents can't park there overnight so as to leave parking spots for commuters in the morning. Also, despite the presence of security cameras in the parking garage, that doesn't mean it is safe. Most crimes happen in parking garages especially overnight, so anything to prevent that is the main priority.

There are plans to open the fifth floor of the garage to further relieve the parking situation.

More info on Parking

Wellness Center

At the latest Student Government Association meeting, an attendee brought up the absence of a nurse practitioner at Dominican's Wellness Center. Since she lives on campus being five hours away from home, it is disadvantageous to her to not have that resource. Norah Collins, Associate Dean of Students and Advisor for SGA, said that the resignation of the nurse practitioner came at an inopportune time - in August soon before classes started. The Wellness Center is currently being evaluated and no hiring decisions are being made just yet. There are other resources available to residents if needed - so those who live far from home have options open to them. The next best option is Rush-Oak Park, which the university has a relationship with and DU students can get a 50% discount there.

10 p.m. Mass in the Resident Halls

New this semester campus ministry has decided to hold a 10 p.m. Mass on Sundays in the Coughlin Commons Multipurpose room. This is a "last call" for students who are unable to attend the 9 a.m. mass at the Priory or the 7 p.m. mass at the Rosary chapel. It is fitting for a student just returning to campus from the weekend.

For more information please visit the University Ministry site.

GAS $$

A big issue for commuters: GAS prices. Driving back and forth everyday can become quite costly these days, especially with prices in the Chicagoland area at about $4.00 a gallon! With this expense gas is actually an issue for everyone...maybe it is time to pull out the bikes or use public transportation.

Wireless internet

I talked with Nathaniel McInnis, User Support Technician for IT, about the potential for wireless internet in the Residence Halls. He said that there was a IT survey last year to gauge the response from residents about how many people would prefer wireless access in the Res. Halls. Though many people would like to have it - the cost to do this is a main obstacle. IT would be responsible for paying the cost (correction: could be upwards of $40,000), so if Residence Life could help with that cost - it would be appreciated.

Welcome!

Welcome to the very first Dominican University blog on Resident and Commuter Life! It is here you will find comments, questions, concerns, and stories on everything relating to the life of DU students in regards to resident and commuter life! If their are problems with parking, food, your dorms, social life, etc. they will all be discussed here.

Feel free to comment and share your own opinion, as Diana and I keep you up to date on your DU resident and commuter news!