The Issue: New options forthcoming for off-campus issues What we think: Students should be aware of resources
The creation of the off-campus help e-mail address by the Office of the Dean of Student Development (ODSD) is a step in the right direction toward increasing communication between students and administrators, and providing an official forum through which students can express their concerns about the quality of off-campus life - an important issue in the recent elections for Undergraduate Government of Boston College presidentcy.
Aside from the off-campus help e-mail address, students should also continue to utilize the other resources currently in place: Information on how to find an apartment can be found on the Office of Residential Life Web site; the UGBC has an off-campus information page with a guide to tenants' rights, as well as apartment evaluations.
The progress, however, should not stop there. The off-campus help e-mail address has only received one e-mail since its creation in January, said Judy Robinson, assistant dean of the ODSD. The lack of use of this e-mail system reveals the necessity for increased accessibility and visibility of resources to decrease the disconnect students living off campus may feel from the University.
The University should take into serious consideration the recommendations made by the UGBC Senate Committee on off-campus policies; specifically, its recommendation to include a link to off-campus resources on Agora as a place for students to file official complaints about off-campus life - potentially running the gamut of landlord problems to disagreements about a report filed by Steve Montgomery. Agora would be the perfect location for the link, because students use it daily for things like accessing e-mail and using WebCT.
Students living off campus are already physically disconnected from BC's campus, but a link for their problems on Agora would demonstrate that the school is still there to help. It would show students that the administration does care about the quality of off-campus student life, and that administrators are listening to their complaints and concerns.
If, however, Agora is not a feasible location for this resource, as has been suggested by Information Technology Services, then the University should develop a similar forum on the Web for furthering the communication between students and administrators. If the administration decides to create a Web site as a centralizing medium to serve as the students' off-campus source for filing complaints and finding answers to their questions, then it needs to be accessible and visible to students. Links on Agora, the BC Web site, and the UGBC Web site should not be too much to ask.
Communication is necessary to make off-campus life more positive for everyone involved - students, neighbors, and administrators alike. The measures being considered by the ODSD make strides in that direction. Students, however, must meet administrators halfway by being informed of their rights and options and utilizing the resources available to them. That means using the off-campus e-mail address if necessary and paying attention to new resources being developed by their leaders.
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