Nathan Elliot, Dir. of Res Life for Training & Dev.
06:50:34 PM
I am here. This is Nathan
So I'll recognize that we're waiting for everybody to join us, and we have a big crowd. And then I'm going to hop off and it's your show.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:00:17 PM
I am here!
And then the for when we are dealing with the chat box last year. What we did. Ryan, Michelle, Amanda and Eric was all of us just kind of helped out with answering the stuff in the chat, so feel free to jump in if you see something that seems a little touchy. Don't feel obligated to go to deal with it, you know. But
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:00:42 PM
I love touchy questions ;-)
So it looks like people are joining us now and so we're going to. We have a large crowd that we're anticipating based on the number of registrations this evening, so we're going to give it a little bit of time as we're watching our numbers kind of tick up and everybody fills into the.
This is going to be great.
It's gonna be great once once we get our act together here, it's going to be great.
There's somebody from probably sunny warm Tampa.
There's a there's a Carol hall person in there, Eric.
Where do you see these names?
See that it said it said said Vermin unite.
That's my favorite. I see him now I see him, yeah.
But these are questions. Are we going to thank you very much for these Puerto Rico Carol 94. Another Carol hall.
Alright, you guys, I'm going to hop off and let you take over the show this evening. Thank you so much. Residential life and community for joining us and I know you're going to have a lot of great questions from our admitted students and families so have a goodnight and I'll I'll be close by if you need my technical assistance.
Thank you, thank you Joyce my my my name is Nathan Elliott. I'm one of the directors of residential life and we have a great panel of individuals here to talk about residential life in Notre Dame. Tonight we're gonna go ahead and do introductions real quickly and let. Why don't we go ahead and we'll have our two resident assistance to raise began on Michelle and Ryan. If you guys want to introduce yourselves and then we'll have our actors who are part of the panel introduce themselves.
Hi everyone, my name is Michelle Selesky. I'm a current senior here at Nerd AME and I'm an RA in Howard Hall. I'm marketing major and I'm originally from Bradenton, FL.
And hi everyone, my name is Ryan Moore. I'm a senior. I'm an RA and Dunn hall. One of the newer ones. I'm studying political science and I am from Dallas, TX.
Hi, I'm Eric Stiles, I am the rector of Carol Hall and there are clearly already some some Carol Alumn in the in the chat here as is my I'm in my 60 year as rector and a six year Notre Dame and I've lived all over the Midwest, but I'm originally from Chicago.
Hello my name is Amanda Springstead. I am in my 8th year as rector and 3rd with the Johnson Family Hall community. I'm originally from South Bend and moved back to the area to join Notre Dame as rector and I'm a Notre Dame alum class of 2011.
And Nathan before you go on in order to clear out these these extra on our sheet. Here I'm going to cut. I'm going to reject those you know welcomes and vermin unites now because we are rejecting them because we just going to clear, clear, clear that out.
That sounds good, yeah, so.
The, uh, so and as I said before, my name is Nathan Elliott. I'm one of the directors residential life. I served as a as a rector for 11 years prior to moving prior to serving in some other areas, student affairs and then returning to residential life. A few years ago and had the privilege of serving alongside Amanda, Eric and our other 31 rectors, as well as all of our residents assistants. All seniors like Michelle and Ryan, who helped make our communities what they are. So we're going to begin with. I'm just going to give sort of an overview.
Residential life here at Notre Dame and we're going to hear a little bit about the experience of Michelle and Ryan as students who've lived in our residence halls. Now, for almost four years, and then for American Amanda, in their their experience being living professionals serving as rectors in our in our residence halls, the when we talk about residential life in Notre Dame, they we really, you know, we. We think about the the words of blessing Basil Moreau.
07:05:08 PM
Not quite an icebreaker, more of a snowball. Hi I have a question on private rooms especially where the student has medical conditions making it highly desirable/necessary
We shall always place that education side by side with instruction. The mind will not be cultivated. The expense of the heart, and we really see a residential life as being central to the educational mission of the university and in fact residential life is actually mentioned in the university's mission statement and and we see this as one of the key places here at the university where all the great intellectual pursuits and academic pursuits at Notre Dame are joined.
With learning from each other, learning, learning, and community, and from one another, the.
Our structure if you will, uh, in our residential life system really revolves around the five pillars of a Holy Cross. Education is, as you've learned by now, watching some of these different webinars. Notre Dame was founded by the Congregational Holy Cross and the you can see the five pillars listed their mind, heart, hope, families deal mind, really talking about the intellectual pursuits of of the university heart.
No, you no concern for for others. Hope you know.
Overcoming adversity, that sort of thing. Family. Of course. Building community, you know, learning how to live with one another and zeal really having a spirit of.
Joyce Lantz
07:06:35 PM
The program this evening will be recorded and made available on demand after the broadcast. Look for it on the admissions.nd.edu/welcomehome website.
Of energy and and and vitality. Really, for all of these other aspects of the Holy Cross pillars and so in our a lot of our activities in the residence halls revolve around these different themes and our really kind of provide this this framework. This structure for for what we do so you know what? How does that actually manifest itself? Well when we talk about residential life at Notre Dame, there's.
You know some pretty unique things about what we do, and you know first is we have 32 residence halls for an undergraduate population of just about 8000 students.
And our residence halls, the largest residence hall, is just around 280 students. Our smallest residence halls just a little over a 100 students, so that's much smaller than than you would find at most other most other universities and colleges, and what that allows for is a place where you really are known by name. As you know later on, we'll hear from Amanda and Eric.
About their experience as rectors and then Michelle and Ryan. Sharing their experiences are as we are. You know it lists a few of the things here that there's 32 halls. The halls are single sex hall staff and random assignments, so our our ratio of whole staff to students is is a very, very good ratio. So in each of those residence halls you have a living professional and then you have two graduate students who are assistant rectors who.
Also bring you know their experience both as graduate students more mature students, but many of them have been out in the professional world working before coming back to Graduate School and then finally our our our as are all seniors which is different from what you would encounter at most other institutions. So they they really bring with them the benefit of you know 3.
At the point at the beginning of their senior year, they've they've had three years at the at the university and can bring their perspective. What they've experienced this freshman sophomore and juniors to to to the to their senior year and helping helping their their first year students in in a very particular way. But all the students in their in their sections, so the random assignments is an important part of the first year experience. So all of our students are randomly assigned with one another they randomly assigned into their residence halls.
And this this goes back to us talking about education of the mind and heart. So we recognize. So with that we work with our students to become come learn how to engage with those who are different from themselves and learn how to work through times when there may be differences and things of that sort. And that goes back to the very favorable ratio we have of Hall staff to students in each of our residence halls so that there is a lot of support there.
To assist students as they as they navigate their their first year experience with with a roommate or in some cases more than one roommate. Depending on the style of room that they have been assigned.
Some other aspects of of life in our residence halls. Most of our residence halls all have mascots. I'll let each of our.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:10:04 PM
It is very unusal (and highly unlikely) a first year would get a single, but the accomadation process is designed to try to meet a student's medical needs. That would be taken care of during the housing application process.
Panelists share what their mascots are when we get get to to to the panel portion of conversation.
All all all, all of our calls have what's called a signature event. There's there's major events that happen that are sponsored by the different halls and organized by the different halls. You know, a couple of the photographs here. One is called muddy Sunday. Uh, in the spring.
And stay playing volleyball in in fields that are muddy. Another you can see here is what's called the Fisher Regatta, one of our one of our men's halls. Has they people build boats and they take it out on the lake and and I would call it a race. But many of the boats actually sink, so in some respects it's it's whose boat can actually make it across the full course. And there's typically the winner teams. While we Notre Dame has intramural sports. They also have a number of intervals. Sports so.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:11:18 PM
Normally parents are allowed throught the year, but becasue of covid they can only visit as the help a student move in. Lets hope covid gets better!
Sports teams that are associated with each residence hall and they compete against each other in an inter hall in interhall leagues, and that's a lot of fun dances. Each semester. Residence halls sponsor a dance and then of course every one of our residence halls has has a Chapel they all have Sunday Mass and then they all have daily mass at least a couple of days a week as well as well as other opportunities for for prayer and spiritual life.
Odd and end to the really nice thing about the way the chapels are just built right into each residence hall. They're really nice space for times when a when a person just wants to have time for quiet or reflection. You know, in addition to two organized prayer as well. And then finally, many of our halls organize hall retreats once a year as well. A great opportunity to build community come together, reflect.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:12:12 PM
First years could esily be placed in a double, triple, quad, etc. It depends on the layout of each building.
And and take a step back and think about what's been going on in their time in the residence hall it in, in their time on at Notre Dame, and and think about what what's coming in the future. So those are some neat neat pieces too.
Residence hall experience at Notre Dame.
You know, as I mentioned earlier, Eric and Amanda are rectors, so we have a rector who lives in each residence hall. They're all you know, live in professional staff, and they they are the pastoral leader of the community builder that they trusted resource in their in their residence hall. The really nice thing about having a living professional in every one of our residence halls is they're they're providing guidance and leadership to their whole staff. There. They work closely with the.
The whole government the the whole Council. That's that's elected by their peers in each residence hall and they really provide a valuable point of contact for all of our students. When there's something that they're just not sure about, they know they can go to the rector and the Rector can confirm to the to the resource that that will best help them with with what they're concerned about, and also the rector is is a as pastoral leader, is a is a valuable.
Research just for conversation and and talking. Talking things through in there it was. What's going on in the students life. The end director is not the only resource in the residence hall like you know. As I already mentioned, they they lead a staff that is comprised of graduate students as well as seniors. 4th year students. Yeah. And then there's also other professional staff who live in the building. So many of our residence halls.
Have priests in residence, so our thirty 3032 rectors approximately 13 are priests who are members of the Congregation of Holy Cross. But then, in addition to that there are other priests, most at the present time. All of them, also members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, who are administrators, faculty, retired faculty, retired administrators. All some of them retired. They were pastors and parishes across the United States or around the world.
And they've they've retired back to Notre Dame in South Bend, and some of them are here living in our residence halls. The faculty and residents, some of that. So as I mentioned, some of our recent residents are battling residents, but we also have lay faculty and residents as well. This photograph here is of the hums family edit is a professor of accountancy in the Mendoza College of Business. He and he and his wife Shirley. They live in residence and lions hall and then faculty fellows.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:14:56 PM
As of right now, parents can visit for all regular public events. They just cannot enter residence halls. Lets hope that changes by the fall.
So they do not live in residence, but many of our residence halls have a have a relationship with with one of our UM with the faculty person in and that faculty person assist with some programming things. You know the blue, some different educational programming, some social programming, but they have a relationship with that with the particular hall community, and all of these comprise this network of support that that we talk about here at Notre Dame. Being apart of the residence hall experience.
So that's just a very high level overview of our residence hall system. You know, I'm gonna invite the the panel back back onto the screen and we'll start first with.
With Ryan and Michelle just to talk a little bit about their their experiences, Ryan and Michelle, if you guys wanna come back on.
When you ran in Michelle, when you guys reflect on your experience is a Notre Dame.
You know what I'd ask you to to think? Well, first let's just start with kind of the easier one, which is in your respective communities and done and empowered. What's what's your favorite events in in your respective communities and and why?
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:16:18 PM
Assignents are random and it is unlikely that "first cousins" would be accomadated.
Yeah, I can start this one off.
I would say that my favorite event is Dunn's retreat. We have our retreat before the spring semester starts, so right at the end of winter break.
And done is only five years old. It's a very new dorm, but the retreat has quickly become the largest retreat on campus. We have the most people of any other retreat on campus which speaks to, I think, the Community that Dunn has. Which is awesome, but I've gone all four years and it has been fantastic. I've loved every minute of it. Really brings all the guys closer together, so I think that's pretty cool.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:17:19 PM
Inter-hall is pretty varried. I suggest checking recsports.nd.edu football is smaller now, but it still exists.
Yeah, my favorite event in Howard is our signature event that was contacted earlier and it's called Tottered for water. So our mascot and Howard here is the Ducks so we have a giant teeter totter out on South Quad and we have residents totter on it and take shifts for 24 hours and people can come and they can donate a dollar or however much they want and they can ride that Otter for as long as they want. It's very flexible event but it's very, very fun and it's kind of fun when especially try to on a game day weekend. We have families walking by with kids and they go and they like.
Tried that Otter and it all goes to support clean water initiatives. So this year we raised money for our engineers Without Borders organization here on campus. Help put clean water in other country.
Great thank you both and then it, you know. Curious to hear both your thoughts about what was most helpful to you during your your transition to college and whole life respectively.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:18:19 PM
As of right now, ND students CAN visit one another's halls. That will continue to depend on the severity of the pandemic.
Yeah, I think I would say just being physically present around the rest of the people in my dorm was the most important. I would say there's a ping pong table and a pool table on the 1st floor of done and staying along those you just meet everybody. You get to know people's names and it helps you find people to go have meals with. It helps you with a lot of you know the issues that first years might have when they're first coming in.
You know, struggling to find friends, struggling to live without family members, things like that being present definitely helped me transition much more quickly.
Yeah, and kind of going off of that. I think something that was really important to my transition as well was just having the opportunity to get to know so many upperclassmen within the hall. So within noting residence halls, just the fact that you are living in the same floor in the perhaps a great next door to upper class and so sophomores, juniors, seniors when your first year for me was so important because they're here to welcome you from the moment that you step out of your car during welcome weekend to the time that you graduate right now. And with that it's something that kind of just gives back throughout all the classes.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:19:29 PM
first years cannot make request of room sizes. They do get to choose rooms based on a lottery after first year
Like because our race, our seniors are kind of just continues that way to where we get to just share our experiences and I can't name the countless times where I didn't know where the building was or I didn't know an academic resource and I had an upper class and you're like, oh, just go here, do that and so having that as Ryan was saying, just having people would know you by name and you get to know other people by name. In that way is so important I think, especially for personally my transition. But I think with the node in residence halls.
Great thank you Amanda and Eric. You know when we we talk about the the mission of cultivating the heart as well as the mind it's lived out in the residence halls. How how do you? How do you work to do this in in each of your communities and how? How do you see that happening?
Amanda, you go first I've I've been typing trying to answer answer questions. I need some help over here with these questions, but Amanda, you go first.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:20:28 PM
RA are only chosen from rising seniors so youl LOTS of time to figure that out.
Happy to yeah. So when I think about the cultivating the mind and heart, I think the residence hall is a really natural place where this happens. So I I have an example just from this. Last Friday I walked in. After I I work part time as a first year advisor so some of you I may be reaching out about advising and picking classes and back. But I work part time in advising and when I came back after doing some.
Meetings over in Bond hall. I walked in to say hello to a number of my residents who were sitting at.
But is essentially our kitchen table in our hall. A long table that we have that is a shared space.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:21:00 PM
Residence hall sizes 100-280
Where they've started on every Friday doing a study group for organic chemistry, which doesn't sound like the way I'd want to spend my Friday afternoon, but they all find it a lot more fun to be doing that together, which is understandable. Then later that night, at the same table we had a boba tea and painting happening that evening for students to come together and spend some time in community. And so we see it in big ways in little ways, and I always tell my residents this is the only time for most of you in your life where you're going.
Like to live down the hall from your best friend or classmates and be able to stop in and have really silly conversations about the bachelor or Bachelorette as well as really important conversations about what you're studying. Or a paper that you're working on. Or current events. And it's just this community that you experience life together. And life is both the mind and heart. And so we cultivate both those well in our in our residence halls here.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:21:45 PM
Every hall has one or multiple common kitchens open to use.
Amanda, thank you for that and I'm seeing a couple things in the chat box where people are indicating they're having a hard time hearing the panelists. UM, I'm wondering if
Joyce Lantz
07:22:02 PM
I can hear you all. :)
I'm wondering if there might like oh OK. I'm seeing some folks who who are saying they are able to hear. Oh thank you for that. I appreciate that. OK great, wonderful good.
Check one, check their own their own sound, because I can hear.
You may perhaps check check your own son. OK great OK, Thanks, Amanda, Eric.
Yeah, I'm I. I can say a little bit about my my job over here in Carol Carol.
Is the smallest also when he was talking about 100?
Ryan Moore, RA
07:22:37 PM
To all those that cannot hear us, try refreshing the page and see if that helps!
He was talking about Carol. We have 102 undergraduates in the building, and then there are two AR's where grad students, the priests and residents and myself. So about 106 people who live in the building and the things that make us distinctive is that because our size and that we are located kind of off the beaten path and there's a lot like some distance between US and the center of campus that it's developed a unique place as a unique culture.
07:23:00 PM
what about utilities -washer/dryer/showers etc?
Jordyn S.
07:23:04 PM
When I switched to Chrome I was able to hear much better. Thank you for this!
Everybody is known by name and that and that known by name is really emphasized because even if you don't want to be known, you're known as the kid who doesn't want to be known, and so it's a it's a close knit.
Warm place and people when they come home to it, they feel like they're at home.
You know we of course we talked about having mass. We talked about, which we do in every residence hall and it being a place we have like. I think Carol has technically two signature events each year. We probably program way beyond the size of the building or the size of the quantity of the number of students, but they really enjoy doing it and so you know, I encourage it. So I think that it's a place where.
It feels very homey, connected and we really work hard. Our motto is almost welcomed, right? So you'll find that every residence hall has its own hall colors. Might have its own motto, his own mascot, kind of like a Catholic. Hogwarts is what I call it, yeah?
And I, I apologize if you can hear, you know, vibrating music because my office is above the exercise room and they're having a good time down there, so I apologize.
Well thanks and and and and and Eric, you both kind of touched on this a little bit, but when you think about how do you help to make your community into a home for your students? What are the some? What are some of the things that that you guys do in your your work, your ministry with students?
Yeah, so I think in addition to trying to be really intentional about offering.
Garnet C.
07:24:37 PM
Hello, I'm curious if we are allowed to cook in our dorms?
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:24:47 PM
Every hall has one or more kitchens
Ways for people to gather together to get to know one another for that known by name piece. I also think just being present, being there for my residents and for my whole staff to be there for our residents. For the highs and the lows for the exciting moments as well as the tough moments just knowing.
That our residents have someone to turn to to share with.
Jaden B.
07:25:04 PM
Where do the retreats go?
Merrick, what would you say?
So we can't hear you now.
I'm sorry, can you repeat the question I was typing?
Yeah, Oh no worries, we're just asking what do you do to help the residents all feel like a home?
Again, it's I'm really trying to make sure the difference is clean, right and.
And you know, we keep this place very clean, and we, Carol is also unique in that all of the all of the common spaces are on the 1st floor. So I walked from my apartment to my office at the other end of the hallway and I walked through basically all the common spaces.
So the guys will come through if they just want to know if there's someone here, they just they walk through the 1st floor.
And so it makes it, you know it. It again more like it's harder to be lost in a place like that.
So just one of the advantages of being in this kind of community, right? And I cook from time to time, you know, cookies and scones and other things like that so.
They like they like a home cooked food. I think Amanda and I both cook pretty often.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:26:41 PM
Retreats are sometimes on campus or in local locations in Indiana and Michigan
That's great. Well thank you guys. I think well, you know there's a lot of great questions that are coming in and I see Eric and Ryan I see have been typing away, answering, answering some of those. Michelle and Amanda. Feel free to to answer questions in the chat as well, but you know, 11 resource 'cause we're going to try to adjust as many questions as we can today. But one resource that I encourage you to take a look at when you have time is of course the residential life website.
Because some of the questions some of the questions that are coming in certainly are are addressed with some of the materials we have there, but the just a couple general ones that I that I noticed on here was were ones around questions about transition and asking about specific kinds of specific kinds of things that should be brought.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:27:25 PM
First years will be placed in rooms with other first years and occasionaly a transfer.
Take a look at the information on our website that provides some good information and just know that prior to your arrival you receive a lot of really great information from residential life from the welcome week staff that that helped prepare you prior to your arrival, Notre Dame will provide that kind of detailed that kind of detailed information.
There's a I'm laughing 'cause one person asked about this going scheduler, but I just flipped through that.
07:27:50 PM
eric, can you post the scone schedule?!
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:27:57 PM
I shall not.
You know that a couple quick things, just to mention that I I've noticed some different questions about folks just wondering about the.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:28:05 PM
:-)
Random assignments and room configurations and staying in halls and and just a few things to touch on with that one. When we touched a random assignment that that is exactly what it is, you're assigned randomly.
07:28:29 PM
Do students typically switch halls each year or do they remain with their original community? And ditto on the cooking question.
Could use the to use the Hogwarts analogy that we actually, jokingly sometimes refer to our assistant rector, who does that as the sorting hat, but unlike the sorting hat in Harry Potter, he he doesn't actually have any kind of magical intuition as poor people. You know, he just is running an algorithm.
In Excel and then and then you know folks get assigned that way, so that that's how that works, and some of the many freshmen rooms are double s, so you would have at least one roommate, but there are, depending on the residence hall, there are some freshman quads, freshman triples.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:29:02 PM
the vast majority of students stay in the same hall 3-4 years. A small number opt to move after their first year. very small.
Where there's you know you you have a total of three roommates or or or two roommates, that kind of thing, so that that's that's important to know how that works.
07:29:12 PM
Are you able to pick your roommate as Sophomore through Senior year?
In terms of the majority of students will typically stay in their residence hall for their full time on campus, but after your first year you do have the option of applying to transfer halls and so some students do choose to do that. If they've made friends elsewhere or or, you know, through a through a club or a sport or some a student organization or whatever it may be. Maybe maybe it just makes sense for them to move to a different building, and so that's certainly an option that's available to folks.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:29:34 PM
yes you may choos e your own roommate after first year
11 interesting question here is, you know a person asked, you know, Eric, you used the term. The same can think of it as kind of a Catholic Hogwarts like, but you know for a person who who is not Catholic, how does that work? Do they do they feel out of place or or what have you? Maybe you can just hear kind of hear about that, yeah?
I'd actually love to talk about this because I'm I'm not Catholic myself. So as a yeah non Catholic student I have the same fear coming to Notre Dame.
Joyce Lantz
07:30:07 PM
We apologize for any audio issues. Chrome works best if that's an option for you. Try closing other windows or refresh this platform.
07:30:16 PM
For incoming freshmen, especially those that are coming from many hours away, is there a must-have list compiled by current and past students, that new students should bring to make ND room their home?
But I was very welcomed. There are a lot of clubs on campus that are like non Catholic Christian clubs as well as like non Catholic interfaith clubs. You have a pretty large community both on and off campus of people who are not Catholic and you have a lot of like priests as well who are willing to like talk to you. Willing to like, make connections with you even though you're not Catholic.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:30:51 PM
this is very hard to answer here. check residentiallife.nd.edu and wait till the specfic hall tells you.
This is a Catholic school, but everyone is very open to all forms of religion, and even if you're not religious, that's completely OK to everyone. Is willing to talk, and that's what you know college is about. We're meeting people who have different views from us, so I think that's one of the beautiful things of Notre Dame is. I got to come to a place where I don't necessarily agree 100% of the time with everyone I'm around, but I'm getting to meet people who have different views for me. And being someone who's non Catholic, I've never felt.
Joyce Lantz
07:31:06 PM
Please note that this broadcast is being recorded and will be available on demand after the broadcast. You'll be able to find it easily on the Welcome Home website.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:31:15 PM
Meals are served in to large dining halls.
I can say just a little bit about working with students. One of the questions I always ask first year student. We meet a man and I as rectors meet every first year student and we try to do that by the end by the beginning or end of October, somewhere before the October break.
Camille M.
07:31:38 PM
Does every room have their own bathroom, or are bathrooms public?
And we have a one on one conversation with each virtual student. Might be in our apartment. It might be in our office. It might be walking my dog. It might be in a coffee shop. Whatever works best.
And I I choose to always ask and I tell them this before they come to tell me about their spiritual life. And I leave it open ended. And then they tell me something, whatever that is, and then we begin a conversation.
Ryan Moore, RA
07:32:18 PM
Bathrooms are public, except for the first floor of every dorm, which will have private restrooms!
You know the hope is that they're they're open to being in an environment where spirituality is important, but they, but they don't feel an obligation to practice any religion, but they are welcome to practice while they're here. And of course, in a particular way, you know it's a Catholic institution, so there's going to be mass in every building, and it's going to be very acaf, very Catholic place. But, but as Ryan pointed out, we have students who are have practiced no religion, and students who are Christian from other traditions.
As well as that, students who are from completely different religions altogether and they find the home here.
So it's very important to us that we do that but but but again, the Amanda and I would probably both say that it's really important. There's a personal relationship between the rector and the student. As much as we can make.
So that if students questions or his uncomfortable, or she's concerned that they can ask.
Thank you, there's some questions about.
07:33:17 PM
it may not be a residence life question but how do most kids get to and from classes since they may be located far from the dorm? Do you recommend a bike or scooter?
Number of people asked some questions about meals. Cook both cooking in the hall as well as how it works with the with the dining halls etc. Maybe we can take a few minutes to just talk about that. Folks want to share something about that?
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:33:36 PM
Assignements are sent in the first week in July
Yeah, so generally halls do have a space where if you would like to cook in the hall you can do so. Uhm, I would say general planning to cook all of your meals would be certainly a challenge, 'cause it's a shared kitchen so.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:33:49 PM
first or secend week in july
Ryan Moore, RA
07:33:50 PM
The longest walk I've ever had across campus is 15 minutes! I have plenty of friends with bikes and scooters, but I have never felt the need for one.
Apart from maybe where there's an accommodation meeting that most people don't generally plan around that, but there are fridges, fridges, freezers, cabinets depending on the size and space in that residence hall, there may be different policies around how much can be stored in those spaces and when, but there are.
07:34:03 PM
what about if you go study abroad for a semester? Do you still have a room saved for you or do get a new roommate when you come back?
There's also like in our hall we have.
Look where I think most halls have cookware that can be utilized as well.
Students can store their own food, either in those common kitchens or in their room to use.
And then meal plans are at the dining hall and we also have flex planes that you can utilize. Those are probably the most popular options that you can utilize at our campus restaurants where you can get sandwiches, burgers, tacos and things like that so.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:34:41 PM
Students tend to work out a room switch with another student wth consultation with the rector
07:35:01 PM
Can you talk about the specifics of move-in day? Do older students help? Is it one specific day or a whole weekend?
And regarding the meal plans, his dad, his flex points with different eateries around campus, some of them are name brands. Places there's a Taco Bell that there's a Chick-fil-A opening very soon. There's a smash burger, but then the dining halls are traditional or collegiate style dining halls, and there's two of them.
Michelle lives just across the quad from South, which looks like the dining hall in Hogwarts.
And I don't know like there's various options of dining halls that you can select, whereas Ryan lives over by what's called North Dining Hall hours or the other large dining hall, which is kind of the more modern looking facilities built in the 50s and renovated relatively recent.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:35:37 PM
Yes, older students help with move in. We are very good at helping people get started. no worries.
But Ryan, Michelle, what would what would you offer about how you've you've lived out? That reality, granted, the COVID reality was very unique that last year, right? But?
Matthew S.
07:35:45 PM
Is there a cost for using the washers and dryers in the halls?
Yeah, I'd say that you with the dining hall is like usually between your first few years here on campus. That's at least as my go to. Personally, there's a traditional meal plan that you get when you first comment. It's typically you have 14 meal swipes, so we can 500 flex points, which is the money you can use on campus. So typically lunch and dinner everyday is was in the dining hall my first couple years and he become really loyal to the dining hall. Depending on where you live as mentioned so I would say South is period dining hall.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:36:16 PM
laundry machines are used at no additional cost. Laundry service can also be order at additional cost
07:36:29 PM
do incoming first year students complete any kind of questionnaire that is used to assign roommates? e.g., sleeping habits, how social they are, need for quiet, etc.
But Ryan might disagree with me over, but you just kind of it's I would say also here. Notre Dame. It's really unique. I personally have found and I love it is getting meals with people. That's one of the greatest ways to be social with others. Is like, hey, I've been seen you in awhile. Do you wanna get a meal sometime because everyone most people live on campus? Most people can have that ability should just go to the dining hall and hang out for a bit. So I'd say dining is really unique here. Really flexible but pass off to Ryan is too.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:36:45 PM
No questionnaire.
Amelia R.
07:37:05 PM
will we find out our freshman roommate before moving onto campus?
Yeah, I would echo everything that Michelle said. Danny Halls were definitely a go to for me as well. I feel that North Superior, but that's OK. We we can agree to disagree. My friends and I would go to north every night at 6:00 o'clock for two years straight. We were there every night. We sat at the same table which is underneath a picture of asparagus on the wall.
Joyce Lantz
07:37:20 PM
https://dining.nd.edu/
And that was just our thing. That's just how we did it and then normally flex points were mentioned. We have a couple different places like Subway or Smashburger on campus. If you feel the monotony of going to the dining hall every single day for every meal, don't fret. You have other options.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:37:27 PM
When you get your assignment, it will include your roommate information.
James W.
07:37:42 PM
A bit of a specific quesiton- are fish tanks allowed in the dorms? Any specifications?
We are opening up a couple different places on campus. We have a Chick-fil-A coming in soon. We have our own modern market. There are a couple different restaurants around campus and then also there are little known places like Dohol where all of the faculty have their rooms. There is a wrap place in DC. Oh and I go there for lunch every day because I think Co makes fantastic wraps. But you have a set number of flex points you're able to.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:38:08 PM
NON-carnivorous fish are allowed. But that should be discussed with roomates.
Spend them throughout the semester and a lot of kids spend them way too quickly myself. Being one of them, but there is definitely a good balance to be found between going to the dining halls and using your flex points throughout the semester.
I also saw a question around vegetarian and vegan options which the dining hall as well as the restaurants on campus do have those options and we also have a nutritionist who works with our dining halls. That is also a resource to all of our students. So if there are special dietary needs.
Jesse Internet Nelly can be a great resource.
Any rector can help put a resident in touch with the nutritionist.
So I've I've seen vocal hitter. Yeah please.
I'm going to go ahead, sorry. I'm going to talk about another question. If you don't, if you Are you ready to move on so someone was asking will students get a chance to see the inside of residence halls at accepted student day? And the answer is no.
Jaden B.
07:38:59 PM
Can you buy more flex points if you run out?
One we we didn't, we didn't do that before COVID because you have to remember that they are live homes for students and so having groups of strangers come into them just doesn't work right? We want them to be homes and so that means that we wouldn't be able to do that.
Yeah, thank you for thank you for that Eric. I know there's been some different questions asking about UM curfew or what time does movement and noise start in the halls, etc. We we do have something in order that we call parietals which is at midnight on weekdays and then at 2:00 AM on Friday nights and Saturday nights. Folks who are not of the of that residence hall, community or or asked to to.
To to to leave the the majority of the building in every building there's a designated 24 hour space so that if you know folks are engaged in conversation or staying up, you know studying or doing other things. They have a space right in the building where they can go to.
Amanda Springstead, Rector Johnson Family Hall
07:40:12 PM
In addition to Flex Points you can buy Domer Dollars which can be used at campus dining options as well as a few local places near campus. These can be purchased by students or family and added to cards
And so I don't know if if our panelists if you guys want to speak a little bit more to that, and particularly on the on the backside where they ask well, what time do do things actually start to get rolling in the morning? Then you know in terms of noise and people doing things and that kind of thing. You know what people experience are, isn't that?
Yeah I can. I can start this one off when it comes to how early you get movement going.
Nicole I.
07:40:46 PM
Can we stay in our dorm for winter break?
It depends really. I would say that there are some of my friends who get up and workout in our gym in the basement at 6:00 AM and I think those guys are crazy. I would never do that but I would say that your classes throughout the week will. The earliest classes you'll find will be around like 8:00 AM or 9:30 AM depending on the day. So I would say that the earliest you really start getting movement is probably.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:41:05 PM
Residence hall s are completley closed for winter break.
07:41:19 PM
does every residence hall have a work out area?
Around like 7:45 or 8:00 o'clock. I don't think I've ever had to deal with too much movement before that other than the real early risers. Wanna seize the day or whatever they say. But no, I think that's about when everyone wakes up showers, maybe goes to get breakfast or something like that.
Yeah, I'd have to agree with Ryan. Probably during the week, not many times outside of class hours in the morning, and even then I don't know. I I usually can sleep through most people walking around doing their class in the morning, so I'm hasn't much moisture Pomfrets lane. But and then at night I would say around soap bridles on weekdays is tweeting earlier is at our midnight and then 2:00 AM on Friday and Saturday nights, and I'd say noise even on those kinds of days ends around those times as well at the latest so.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:41:57 PM
Virtually every hall does have a work out space, but we also have two non-ncaa rec spaces on campus.
Most of the time don't really have to worry about noise, but it is also a college campus, so things are sometimes going pretty late into the like around 10:00 PM, but usually never too much of a problem.
07:42:13 PM
Are boys allowed in the girls dorm rooms? and vice versa?
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:42:19 PM
yes.
Knowing that we're you know, we're we're coming up, coming up on time I'm gonna just try to hit a couple things real quick you know we we do there are almost every residence hall does have some small workout space, but there are campus rec, rec spaces as well. There's two, there's one on South Quad holder called the Rachni. And then there's the Smith, the Smith Recreational facility that's in our in Duncan Student Center that's attached to the stadium. So that's just one thing to know. Some people there was some.
Different questions regarding being able to visit folks and other residence halls etc and.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:42:46 PM
Parietals are the rules about when visitaion ends and begins
Anna K.
07:43:15 PM
Are freshman allowed to bring cars?
The the The the overarching question is yes you can go visit friends in another residence hall and they can come visit you and things like that. If you have friends or siblings or people that you've known who attended here last school year because of some different COVID related restrictions that that was not necessarily the case and so that may be why? Why you have heard about that this school year at the present time, the only people permitted in the residence hall is this as a COVID related restriction.
Joyce Lantz
07:43:20 PM
If the panelists can stay until 9:00 pm, we can keep the broadcast going to get to a few more questions.
Ryan Moore, RA
07:43:31 PM
Freshmen can bring cars their second semester!
Are Notre Dame students, faculty and staff except with the, with the exceptions of move in weekend and move out weekend so that you know students can have some help from family or friends, helping them move in and out.
But but pre COVID students would have the ability to host a friend to stay with them. You know, in their in their their hall that kind of thing, yeah?
So can I jump in for a couple of questions so there's another one here? One is I asked about having friends over for the weekend during the COVID as as Nathan just described right now that is not allowed to have friends who are not Notre Dame students. OK, because of kovid and and under normal circumstances, the expectation would be if you have a friend of the opposite sex that you want to visit there. Welcome to visit campus.
They were not welcome to spend the night. OK, so they can. What most people do is that they ask a friend of the same sex to host that person in his or her hall or they rent a hotel, right? Those are the two general options.
OK, and then what percentage maybe Amanda knows this? I don't know what percentage of the residence halls have AC all the residence halls have AC air conditioning in common spaces.
OK, however, many of our halls are.
Historic right, which is one of my my hottest historic and so the student rooms don't have air conditioning. The great thing is or the complicated thing is, is that the the you know the the summer ends very quickly here.
Lucas S.
07:45:13 PM
By "non-ncaa campus rec spaces", are those pretty limited or large gyms? I was able to go inside a couple of floors of exercise space at Duncan, but I don't remember if those were for everybody or only athletes.
In the fall, so by maybe the second or third week of September the temperature drops significantly and gets very comfortable. So so the the the heat drops. You know, you know, you typically don't have to worry about that for a long, long time.
Ryan Moore, RA
07:45:25 PM
The floors are Duncan are for everyone!
So just like on this panel, Amanda and Ryan are live in air conditioned halls, whereas Eric and Michelle do not. They live in historic halls, but.
I'm sure that was done on purpose, right?
Yeah, but but comments, the common spaces are air conditioned, so it's not unusual at the very beginning of the school year when it gets really hot.
For folks who just want a little bit of cool air to go, they might go down and relax down to the air conditioning within the space that's air conditioned in their building, you know, just to cool off, and that kind of thing. But South Bend does cool off pretty quickly, so those of you heard from the southern United States who are trying to think of like, how do you do that? It it? It does get cold cooler here.
Much faster than in other parts of the country, so.
Connor C.
07:46:08 PM
Does every hall have study rooms?
They have a question about about safety. Someone take a question on safety.
Yeah Ryan and Michelle, Amanda, Eric, what what would you guys say about?
Michelle Sobolewski, RA
07:46:41 PM
Yes! there are common study spaces in the residence halls and the 24 hour space for people to be in
About that, I think the one thing that I would offer is just for folks to know that the buildings are there. They're there's swipe card access so you get into them with your your student ID card. So each student has access to the hall that they live in. And then of course if you're going over to a friends halt, your friend let's you in to that to that building. So that's one safety related item, but are there things that you guys would share related to safety?
We have our own do Police Department and we all have our own fire department.
So I remember a parent once looking around the building and and asking where are the fire escapes, right you know, and I I resisted the urge to say that this building is probably safer than their home, but that is the truth. OK, so even though it's a very old building, we still have fire.
Fire safe stairwells on either side of the building that close when the alarm system goes off. We have people coming have a huge digital system that takes care of that they come in and check it regularly so you know, for example, fire safety is very good here and we have our own Police Department and we don't. I would say that things are pretty good. You know there is no place that where is 100% safe. That's just not real and so that means that.
Do do? Are there occasionally things that happen that we are concerned about? Sure, but we get readouts about that and we talk about those issues when we need to. We encourage students when they're traveling to to exercise good judgment.
When they're going off campus, but also over there on campus, we have services like if you need a ride. If you're on one side of campus, you concern about getting across campus. We do have services to help you do that, but generally students don't don't report a high level of lack of safety on our campus.
07:48:32 PM
Are microwaves and refrigerators common to bring?
07:48:32 PM
Are there still some STEM focused halls?
I would add as well within the residence hall specifically, I think that high number of hall staff that anything was talking about earlier was kind of, I think, like as a resident, I felt pretty safe knowing that there was an RA in my section and how it's our floor. But then also there were two assistant directors, so grad students. Additionally in the building as well as the rector who is kind of the adult, the building as well. So I think knowing that and knowing like in our training like we're all told how to like take care of things needed to be taken care of like we're here.
View from my seat needs to get back to the dorm at night. We can contact my dorm so I think things like knowing things like that was always very helpful in that there's always someone on call if needed for any reason. We always have one on the duty number for the hall.
Amanda Springstead, Rector Johnson Family Hall
07:49:14 PM
Can't bring microwaves, but mini fridges are common but not necessary. alk with roommates prior to making that decision.
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:49:16 PM
I don't think there are STEM focused women's hall anymore. the numbers of women in stem have increased
Well, I am conscious of the time that we were supposed to wrap up at 8:45. It's a little bit past that now a lot of great questions continue to come in in the chat box, and we've we've tried to answer as many questions as we can. I do encourage you to take a look at our website residentiallife.nd.edu and then also please as the as we move into the late spring and early summer. You're going to be receiving information from residential life.
Joyce Lantz
07:49:35 PM
Thanks so much for a great panel discussion.
Alejandra V.
07:49:47 PM
What medical services are available ?
Eric Styles, Rector Carroll Hall
07:49:58 PM
uhs.nd.edu
Amanda Springstead, Rector Johnson Family Hall
07:49:59 PM
More about what appliances are allowed and what are not can be found at residentiallife.nd.edu
Regarding applying for housing from from the university regarding plans for welcome week when when you'll, you know, be making preparations to come to Notre Dame, please take a look closely at that that information because that I I know that the the housing application even that you know there's been some some questions about students who you know, have different kinds of needs that even that app, that application we try to connect folks with the with the different resources.
That may be helpful to them even right at the outset, 'cause we want. We want all of our students to to feel supported and welcome, and a strong sense of belonging here at her name. So with that, I think we'll go ahead and sign up. Thank you all very much for attending. Thanks, Michelle, Ryan, Eric, and Amanda for for participating in this panel today. And congratulations to all of you on your acceptance to Notre Dame and look forward to seeing many of you.