Offenhauer

Hall
closing
2008
A six week countdown to the end

of the spring semester

Week 6
March 24th to March 30th
Action Items:

• Check where you are at for programming with your supervisor—you have four weeks
left to plan, implement, and host programs so plan accordingly
• Touch base with your all-hall programming group; be sure you have an idea at this
point of what you will be responsible for and an overall timeline for the program
• Assess floor academic needs—do your residents seem focused and ready for ex-
ams? Have a lot of students in science classes in need of a tutoring session? Others
losing focus on their papers? Now is the time to arrange academic programs that will
still be effective in improving student’s academic performance.
• Make a conscious effort to address community issues such as quiet hours viola-
tions—many students will already be preparing for the end of semester projects, big
papers, and some may have their finals in only a couple weeks. Be sure your com-
munity is in tune with not only the Community Living Standards but the needs of your
residents
Watch for:

• Lack of motivation—provide that extra push to get through the next few weeks
• Relationship issues between residents and significant others
• If the weather continues to be gloomy, watch for signs of depression—be prepared
to offer programs to keep spirits up!

Events this week:

Tues. 3/25: Tough Questions with Sidney Ribeau—8pm—BA 114
Thurs. 3/27: Silenced? Speak up for change at BGSU: Panel and open
discussion—7pm—Olscamp 221
Thurs. 3/27: UAO Pub Series: Open Mic Night—8pm—BTSU Pub
*This weekend*: Dance Marathon
Week 5
March 30th to April 6th
Action Items:

• Continue programming and program plans—3 weeks left!

• Your all-hall programming group should have a date and location selected as well as
working with any necessary contracts or BGSU paperwork
• Keep up on paperwork—be sure IR/SIs are getting in on time as well as any other
budget paperwork—this will make things easier later in the semester. Wait, it is later
in the semester…
• Help residents to get out and get active (weather pending) - providing safe, healthy
alternatives to other choices is important for stress relief, personal balance, and
overall health and wellness.
• Stay on quiet hours—more and more of your residents are working on final projects
and papers—they need your support more than ever to maintain an environment
suitable for studying.
Watch for:

• Roommate tension—even some of the best roommate relationships may be getting

a little tricky at this point.
• Overall academic stress—students may be realizing just how much work they have
ahead, what they really need to get on that exam, etc.

Events this week:

Mon. 3/31: BTSU Pub Trivia Night—9:00pm
Tues. 4/1: BTSU Learn How To...Dance—Room 201—6pm-8pm
Tues. 4/1: UAO—Movie: Sweeny Todd—BTSU Theater—9:30pm
Wed. 4/2: Café Night III: Spoken Word/Slam Poetry Night (with SMART)—
9pm—Offenhauer Lobby
Fri. 4/4 & Sun. 4/6: UAO—Movie: Sweeny Todd—BTSU Theater—9:30pm
Week 4
April 7th to April 13th
Action Items:

• 2 weeks left for programs! Keep up the good work!

• Select a date for your hall closing meeting—plan to hold it next week
• Know your exam schedule—we’ll be signing up for move-out hours shortly during staff
meeting as well as duty nights based on exam schedules
• If students have not already, encourage and remind them to sign up for Fall 2008
classes and to sign-up for on-campus housing next year.
• Wednesday April 9th—Transition Meeting—Watch for additional details—NotStaff Mtg
Watch for:

• Stress levels—residents are still in the midst of final projects and papers. Watch for in-
creased alcohol use and other substance abuse as well as other signs that residents
are not coping well with stress
• Anxiety—over summer jobs, exam performance, etc. Encourage your residents to do
the best they can; support the options they have chosen for summer employment or
other summer activities. Career Services is always a resource for a student who is still
unsure of how to secure a summer internship or other work.
• Issues of fatigue and discouragement—students may feel highly unmotivated and ex-
hausted by this point—help keep the positive energy up!

Events this week:

Greek Week—Events all week
Mon. 4/7—La Communidad International Dinner—7:00pm
Tues. 4/8—Box of Horrors—6:00pm-9:00pm—BTSU Ballroom
Wed. 4/9—Café Night IV—9:00pm—Offenhauer Lobby
Thurs. 4/10—When the Levees Broke (movie)—6:00pm—Olscamp 221
Thurs. 4/10—UAO Pub Series—8:00pm—9:00pm—BTSU Pub
Fri. 4/11—Speed Dating—7:00pm—BTSU 202 B (Community Room)
*Sibs ‘N Kids Weekend* - Watch for additional events
Week 3
April 14th to April 20th
Action Items:

• Last week for programs!

• Be sure to submit any programming forms early and quickly
• Begin writing your reflection of the year for the Offenhauer End of the Year report
• Work on creating any other creative or interesting methods of notifying residents of
residence hall closing—this can include butcher block signs, individual notes, etc.
Watch for:

• Students may be concerned with how to continue college relationships during the
summer—how can you assist in helping residents maintain those connections?
• Potential conflicting feelings regarding returning home for the summer
• As with previous weeks, that quiet hours are being maintained on the floor.
Closing Notes:

• Begin promoting your hall closing meeting—hold it this week.

• Consider alternative methods of promoting hall closing—sending out an email, Face-
book invite, signs in bathrooms, etc.

Events this week:

Mon. 4/14—Trivia Night in the BTSU Pub—9:00pm—11:00pm
Wed. 4/16—RA Banquet
Thurs. 4/17—Creative Minds Movement Poetry Slam—Olscamp 101
Fri. 4/18: Mac and Offenhauer End of the Year Bash
Sun. 4/20: UAO Presents: Kite Runner—BTSU Theater
Week 2
April 21st to April 27th
Action Items:

• Host your hall closing meeting (See enclosed hand-out #1: Hall Closing Floor Meet-
ing and hand-out #2: Standard vs Express Closing)
• Post quiet hours and closing signs
• “Dead Week” - no formal programs should be taking place, however, providing op-
portunities to eat dinner together and relieve exam stress are appropriate.
Watch for:

• Apprehension/anxiety building about going home

• Residents needing some extra assistance in staying focused and making it through
these last two weeks
Closing Notes:

• Speedy Conduct Meetings begin Wednesday at 5:00pm (see hand-out #3: Speedy
Conduct)
• Front desk items are no longer available beginning Saturday, April 26th.
• Quiet Hours begin Saturday, April 26th at 11:59pm with the exception of vacuums
and carts.
• If you are graduating, be sure to have touched base with your supervisor to make
any special arrangements for Saturday and to complete any tasks in advance of
graduation.
• Promote WYMO (When You Move Out) to residents as an option for items that are
still useable but they no longer wish to keep.

Events this week:

“Dead Week” - No formal programs except for closing meetings
Last Week
April 28th to May 4th
Action Items:

• Take down all old signage

• Remove all bulletin boards including butcher block and all the staples
• Take inventory of lounge furniture
• Arrange all floor furniture once residents have left
• Return any “found” items to the front desk that you may see in rooms when checking
out or around the floor that are left behind.

Watch for:

• Residents who are not leaving after exams

• Residents who seem uniformed on the check-out process
• Residents who may be sad to leave and return home
• Damage to floors—please heighten your awareness of these issues that occur in ei-
ther common areas or in individual rooms and report as soon as possible.

Closing Notes:

• Recycling rooms close by noon on Wednesday, April 30th

• Quiet Hours continue until Friday, May 2nd at 5:00pm
• Building closes at 2:00pm on Saturday, May 3rd
• Remember special duty nights and additional desk hours
• All RAs need to stay until Sunday, May 4th
• Be prepared for additional closing duties—these include cleaning behind the front

Events this week:

No formal programs—exam week
Handout 1 Hall Closing Meeting
CLOSING FLOOR MEETING AGENDA
1. Pass around a check sheet where each resident can indicate an estimated check out time.
Remind them that no check outs can happen AFTER midnight, and must be 24-hours after last
exam. Exceptions must submit an “Extended Stay Request Form” available off the closing
procedures on www.offenhauer.com.

2. Remind residents to complete mail forwarding address forms. They are off the My Community
Section of My.BGSU. (Please find this for yourselves NOW so you can answer their questions).
Inform them they will be required to pay postage on all magazines and newspapers that are
forwarded. Please stress that no mail will be forwarded unless they complete the form.

3. Announce quiet hours for exam week and review other important end-of-the-year policies.

4. Review dining center closing schedule (available on website, sent via email or available through
staff meeting prior to closing)

5. Remind students that all rooms must be set up as they were when they moved in: beds de-lofted
(with support bar, stabilizer and bed-ends in closets) *** 4 pins for each bed should be in their top
desk drawer. They will be billed for missing or damaged furniture.

6. Trash bags and limited cleaning supplies will be available at the front desk. All trash must be
taken to dumpsters, or individual floors will be charged. One large body bag will be in each mailbox
beginning finals week.

7. Remind students of the When You Move Out, Don’t Throw it Out Program.

8. Explain that all belongings left in rooms will be charged for custodial to move it – ($25 /hr), then
donated to When You Move Out Program.

9. Announce check out hours and procedures. (You must be familiar with both Standard and
Express Checkouts – see included handout explaining each process) All students are to vacate
Offenhauer 24 hours after their last final.

10. Graduating seniors, students participating in graduation, and dining service workers who MUST
work after their finals must print out and complete an Extended Stay Form (available as PDF
document off closing instructions) and submit it to the front desk no later than April 27. They will be
notified on April 30th if they are approved to stay. Failure to fill out this form means they must leave,
no matter their work schedule.

11. Remind students that 20 minute parking is for loading and unloading, and will be watched very
closely by parking and traffic. Parking on the grass or in fire lanes is not permitted and cars will be
towed.

12. Remind students that any bikes left on bike racks will be removed by police and auctioned off.
Handout 2 Step by step resident to do list

Step by Step Resident To-Do List Before Leaving the Building:

1. Remove ALL belongings from your room.

2. Donate any unwanted but still useable items to the When You Move
Out, Don’t Throw it Out program
3. Clean your room (sweep, dust, vacuum, etc.); remove all contact pa-
per, poster putty, sticky tape; empty and clean out trash can.
4. Discuss with your roommate any potential damage/cleaning charges
so the appropriate person is billed.
5. All original items must be in the room and intact. All personal items
must be removed prior to getting in line to check out of your room.
6. Go to the front desk to start closing paperwork—plan accordingly,
during peak checkout times this could take over 20 minutes from be-
ginning to completion of paperwork.
7. Fill out mail forwarding information under MyBGSU on-line
Handout 3 Standard vs. express check out

All students must follow one of the two checkout procedures for their
room prior to moving out. Failure to do so before Saturday, May 3rd at
2:00pm will result in improper checkout charges.

1. Standard Checkout:
A custodial or hall staff member will go through the room with the resident. The
important part of this process is that the resident will be notified immediately of
any damages he or she will be responsible for paying for. The resident can only
use standard check-out during predetermined hours (to be announced closer to
closing) and must be present.

2. Express Checkout:
The student will sign a form agreeing to accept any charges assessed when the
room is checked out later. The student will turn-in his or her key/PED immedi-
ately at the desk. Charges will be posted to the Bursar bill. Express checkout is
available from 8:00am to Midnight.

*A note on improper checkout charges: Students may be charged for any of the
following improper checkout scenarios: Submitting an incomplete express check-
out form, not submitting their keys and/or PED, checking out after the determined
express and standard checkout times, checking out after the building has closed,
among others.
Handout 4 Scheduling speedy discipline

To schedule speedy discipline, do so as follows:

• Beginning Wednesday, April 23rd at 5:00pm, schedule all discipline at the

clipboard behind the front desk.
• Schedule residents, if possible, with the hall director for the respective
floor:
• Jolene: 6 West—10 West
• Erin: 5 West; 5 East—9 East
• Renee: 2 East—4 East; 2 West—4 West
• If the HD for that floor is not available, schedule with the next available HD
• The student must be scheduled to meet with the HD within 24 hours of the
incident
• If the incident has occurred and the student plans to leave in less than 24
hours, the student must be notified that:
1. they must meet with an HD before checking-out and
2. they cannot check out until the incident has been resolved with a
Hall Director, or they could face further consequences.
Handout 5 Hall Closing FAQ
Hall Closing FAQ
All your most pressing closing questions answered:

1. Is storage available over the summer?

No.

2. Can a student be charged for room trash or leaving a room dirty after checking out?

Yes and yes. This would be assessed by custodial staff and charged at an hourly rate
or for any specific damages that result in the replacement or repair of building property.

3. I am helping with commencement/playing in the band/working dining services/doing

some other work for someone on campus, can I stay past 2pm on Saturday?

Maybe. A resident must fill out an Extended Stay Request form. These will be approved
on an individual basis. Typically these forms are due approximately two weeks before
closing and are available on the residence hall website and at the Offenhauer front
desk.

4. What is the difference between Express and Standard Checkout?

Go back to Handout #3
Handout 6: Hall Closing Instructions
Hall Closing Instructions
How do I check a resident out of the building?
Spring 2007 Closing Hours (Subject to change—this should give you an idea of the timeframe):
Express: 8am—Midnight
Standard: Mon-Fri.: 10:00am—9:00pm; Sat.: 8:00am—2:00pm

Express:
1. Pull emergency card and room inventory or provide blank inventory if there is not one in the file.
Have resident fill out and sign form.
2. Have resident fill out and sign Express Checkout form. Explain that by signing they agree to accept
any charges for damages to their room.
3. Collect key (place on key board) and PED (place in PED box).
4. Make sure the lockout key is not checked out to the resident.
5. Make sure they have checked their mailbox and filled out the Mail Forwarding Form on MyBGSU.
6. Remind them that bikes cannot be left on campus
7. Staple and place paperwork in slot based on the floor. If both residents of a room have checked
out with Express check-out, paper clip those files together.
8. Highlight the roster on the closet doors.

Standard Checkout:
1. Pull emergency card and room inventory or provide blank inventory if there is not one in the file.
Have resident fill out and sign form.
2. Collect key (place on key board) and PED (place in PED box).
3. Make sure the lockout key is not checked out to the resident
4. Make sure they have checked their mailbox and filled out the Mail Forwarding Form on MyBGSU
5. Remind them that bikes cannot be left on campus.
6. Ask student to meet custodial staff in their room.
7. If resident is to be billed, paperclip and place paperwork in Standard Checkout box.
8. Highlight the roster on the closet doors.