The V.O.I.C.E. Themed Living Community is a community that fosters cultural education amongst residential students. VOICE stands for: Valuing Opportunities in Cultural Education. Each student in this community will be given a voice and an opportunity to foster their academic and personal development through investigating issues regarding identity as it relates to self and others. With the assistance of Residential Life and Student Housing and campus partners, students will be encouraged and guided through a learning curriculum that will connect them to the campus and surrounding community.

The VOICE Themed Living Community is located in Building 2, Carrageen Hall and houses nearly 53 residents. Each apartment has

• two bedrooms to house a potential of four residents (2 full-time students per room)
• a full kitchen with a refrigerator
• wireless internet and basic cable

V.O.I.C.E. residents are all required to register for 1 cultural class each semester. Cultural classes are listed under these departments as follows: Sociology, Physiology, Women Studies, Jewish Studies, Chicano Studies, Pan African Studies, and etc. Before midterms of each semester residents will turn in “Academic Review Sheets” to their Community Director. These review forms will assist in conversations between the Community Director, Resident Advisor, and resident about academic success. The V.O.I.C.E. community offers a residential leadership position known as a Peer Mentor. Peer Mentors assist the Resident Advisors with programming and community morale. Each resident will engage in educational and developmental inter-cultural dialogue. Residents have the opportunity to involve themselves in their local and national community through service. In addition, residents will experience an interactive and dynamic social justice conference at California State University- Fullerton.

1. What is there to do in the VOICE Themed Living Community?
2. How much is housing and by when do I need to pay my bill?
3. Is it safe to live on campus?
4. What about parking? Is there public transportation?
5. What should I bring with me?
6. How do I pick my roommate, and how do I contact them? What if we don’t get along?
7. Which orientation should I go to?
8. How do I get my internet hooked up once I arrive? Do I need something special?
9. I don’t know how to cook. How does the meal plan work?
10. What is a Resident Advisor (RA)? Does every floor have one? What are community standards and floor meetings?

If you have questions or would like more information in regards to the V.O.I.C.E. Themed Living Community, please contact:

1. What is there to do in the VOICE Themed Living Community?
Residents will develop a variety of relationships with others in the community and in all of the residence halls. Residents spend free time together, go out to eat in the local neighborhood, attend campus events or go off and explore Los Angeles. Many residents have similar classes so study groups can easily be formed. What you put into the community is what you will get out of it. Be active and open to participating and you will find there are many things to get involved in both inside and outside to the residence hall. Residents will participate in a cultural class of their choice. They will also experience many multicultural events and educational opportunities in the local community.

2. How much is housing and by when do I need to pay my bill?
Current room rates and a payment schedule are listed here. VOICE residents will select a double occupancy room with a kitchen as those are the only type of room offered in Building 2, Carrageen Hall. Payments can be made in full at the start of the year or monthly through our Monthly Installment Plan. Charges will be posted to the resident’s University Student Account. Each month residents will need to log in to their myNorthridge account and pay their rent through the SOLAR system.

3. Is it safe to live on campus?
CSUN has several systems set in place in order to ensure the safety of its students. The police department, called The Department of Public Safety (DPS), is housed on campus and provides a quick response time to emergency situations. DPS also provides a nighttime escort service called the Matador Patrol. Upon request, the Matador Patrol can escort students between buildings and/or to their car. This service is available from dusk to 11:00pm. Throughout campus there are Emergency “Blue Light” Phones. The emergency phones connect directly to the police in case of Police, Medical or Fire emergencies. There is also a TTY emergency phone available close to the Lighthouse Community in Building 6. Student Housing controls both auto and foot traffic during busy nights (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) in housing by closing the gates to the housing complex. In order to enter the housing complex, residents must show their resident ID upon gate entry and register any guests that may be accompanying them.

4. What about parking? Is there public transportation?
You need to have a Residential/Housing Parking Permit to park your car in Student Housing parking lots and structures. You may purchase your Housing Parking Permit online through myNorthridge. For additional parking information such as cost and payment instructions, go to http://www-admn.csun.edu/parking.

There is also public transportation local to campus. These links will provide you with the public Metro Bus and Metrolink train schedules.
Metro Bus
Metrolink

5. What should I bring with me?
Residents are encouraged to contact their new roommates once they have selected their bed space. Discuss the items you hope to bring and what your roommates may be interested in sharing (i.e. microwaves, televisions, stereos, household appliances)

• Toilet paper
• Toiletry Items
• Extra Long Sheets
• Lamps
• An Alarm Clock

• Candles
• Pets (unless they are fish in a 10gallon tank or smaller)
• All your clothes for the whole year (The closets are not huge... bring clothes in season and put the rest in storage, have them shipped later, or go back and get them when the seasons change)

6. How do I pick my roommate, and how do I contact them? What if we don’t get along?
Picking which room you will live in is done entirely online through the Student Housing website. You will be expected to go online and pick the building and room you want to live in. If you select the VOICE Living Learning Community and are accepted, you will only be able to select other accepted residents in the community as your roommate.

If you already know who you want your roommates to be, you will need to communicate with them so all of you sign-up for the same living learning community. Each person will need to go into the online system and select their room.

During the application process, you will be asked if you want to share profile information on the Profile Sharing setup page. On this page, you are able to select what contact information your potential roommates will have access to. The information includes your name, phone number, email, sleeping and smoking preferences, etc. You can share all, part or none of this information. If your roommates choose to share their profile information, you will see who your potential roommates will be. If they chose not to, because of confidentiality laws, you will have to wait until you move in to meet your roommates.

Each group of residents will begin the year by filling out a Roommate Contract. Roommate contracts are distributed by Resident Advisors (RAs) during the first floor meeting. These contracts give residents an opportunity to sit down together, talk, and make decisions about topics such as their guest policy, who will clean what, what can be shared, study and sleeping hours, and much more. Once the contract is complete each roommate will sign it, showing their agreement to the terms of the contract. It is up to residents to actually fill the contract out, but should they need help they are encouraged to ask their RA for assistance. Should a roommate break terms of the roommate contract then a Roommate Mediation will be facilitated by the RA among the residents of the apartment. At that time residents are asked to compromise and agree upon new terms to their contract as necessary. If this process does not seem to resolve the conflict the residents can contact their Community Director (CD). The CD’s contact information can be found on the Student Housing website.

7. Which orientation should I go to?
All residents of the VOICE Living Learning Community will move in on August 17, 2009 to attend a campus orientation and Freshman Welcome Program.

The LLC Freshman Welcome Program is a program designed to familiarize residents with issues facing new residents. Participants will build community within the Living Learning Communities, develop connections to the University and participate in programming to successfully begin their first year in the residence halls. There is a one time charge of $25 for participants and the program is mandatory. Below is a basic schedule for the program:

• Monday, August 17: Move in day, attend a BBQ with your family
• Tuesday, August 18: LLC Freshman Welcome Program
• Thursday, August 20: LLC Freshman Welcome Program
• Friday, August 21: Campus Orientation
• Monday, August 24: Classes Start

For any questions, please contact the Office of Residence Life at (818) 677-2587.

8. How do I get my internet hooked up once I arrive? Do I need something special?
All buildings in Student Housing have access to FREE wireless internet. Your computer needs to be equipped with a wireless card. You can access the wireless network by joining the 'CSUN' network. If you do not have a wireless card, you can buy one or purchase a LAN cable and plug directly into the wall to access the internet. For more information, click here.

9. I don’t know how to cook. How does the meal plan work?
All VOICE Living Learning apartments are furnished with a full-kitchen so a meal plan is not mandatory but it can be an option for any student. A meal plan can be purchased through the University Corporation, not housing. For more information on meal plan options and costs, please click here. The meal plans include 10 meals at Geronimo’s, our cafeteria located in the housing complex, and Dining Dollars which can be used at other on-campus eateries.

10. What is a Resident Advisor (RA)? Does every floor have one? What are community standards and floor meetings?
Every floor has a Resident Advisor (RA). Their role in relation to their floor and residents is to facilitate meetings, host programs which foster personal growth, and encourage interaction among residents. RAs also provide individual and academic support to residents. At the start of the semester, the RA will conduct a floor meeting, a gathering of all residents on the floor, to share basic information, policies, and regulations. The RA will also facilitate a Community Standards Meeting where members of the floor will discuss, agree upon, and follow guidelines to insure a secure and comfortable environment for everyone. The floor will decide these Community Standards themselves and in the past they have ranged from dealing with strangers to abandoned laundry in dryers. Community standards tend to be established at the beginning of the year and can be added to throughout the year.