Day 20 living

Good morning, Monks,

When I was a college freshman, I lived on a floor (6th floor, Wright Hall) where the lounge had been converted into a giant residence room.  Bunk beds lined the walls, with a big open space in the middle, adorned with the various tie-dyed tapestries popular at the time.  Memories are fuzzy, but I think there was something in the order of 16 students (all guys) in there.  I think one of them was a hockey player and stored his gear in the lounge.

Yikes.

Luckily, that's not the situation at Saint Joe's.

For our resident students, (and this year, that means about 84% of you) living on campus is a unique, exciting, and sometimes challenging experience. It's designed, purposefully, to be all of those things, if you can believe it.

While all of us on campus truly hope that transformational experiences of your college life happen within the walls of our classrooms and scheduled student activity...let's be real.

They happen at 2 am with a group of friends hanging out together in one of the lounges.  A spontaneous Wal-Mart run with your suitemates.  Some quiet, (and underrated) time alone in your room, unplugging from a busy world, and a busier mind.  A moonlight walk down to the Lake with friends (ugh, I really hope I'm not advocating breaking our own campus policy, I'm halfway through my first coffee).

What I'm trying to say is, there's a bit of magic involved, actually.  These experiences are so precious.  I hope that when you return, you take the time to notice these moments, and savor them.

This year, a few changes to note.  This fall, you'll see our own beloved O'Connor Hall (1986) vacant, for the most part.  In a later post, I'll discuss in-depth the move of our Health & Wellness Center (yes, that's in O'Connor now) but we're also setting aside all of the resident rooms in the event that students come into contact with COVID-19, and need a safe, healthy (and yes, isolated) place to stay.  I promise it's not as bad, or as good, as it sounds.

Second, for both our resident and commuter students, we've now moved all of our parking processes, decals, and permits online.  We have officially arrived.  And, if you're one of those unfortunate souls who gets a parking ticket, you can appeal that online, too.  Just remember, we haven't to my knowledge, ever ticketed anyone for parking correctly.

Jokes aside, if you're planning on bringing a car to campus, check it out.  If you're not, that's fine, too (the Earth thanks you).

Can't wait to see you.  Have a great day.

Matt

 

To learn more: 

Go to http://parking.sjcme.edu

For directions on how to get your parking permit, click the following link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/108UnxVVQP2PD6LAbzhbTYW_0WXnHskGj/
For directions on how to appeal a citation, click the following link (Must be logged into your SJC GMail Account): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FYbF5dTc1TgZFMRKOm8875rmme8VZoyV/

 

Matt Goodwin is the Dean of Students at Saint Joseph’s College.

Along with a motley crew of Campus Life professionals in the areas of Student Engagement & Residential Living, Counseling Center, Health & Wellness Center, Campus Safety, and the Mercy Center, Campus Life supports students’ holistic personal development, learning, and empowerment in service to a global community.