Move-In Special, 2002

John Iannone, ed.,
Graduate Assistant

Important Things to Know:

Rent is due on the first, late on the fourth.

Call the RA on duty for any concerns you have, day or night:
Pisces x: 5105
Aries x: 5036
Capricorn x: 5096

Be sure to place your parking permit inside the windshield of your car!

Please ask your guests (anyone without a parking permit) to park in visitor parking spots, usually located along the fence of each community!

Check In Dates:
Pisces: 8/17/02
Aries: 8/17/02
Capricorn: 8/16/02

Welcome!

Letter from the Editor

By now, I’m sure you’ve been welcomed many times by our many staff members. I hope they’ve made you feel right at home in your new community!

I’m sure you’ve noticed this is quite a unique place to live! It is the only place in the country where a private apartment community has partnered with a University Residence Life program.

Residence Life programs, like this one at UCF, are programs that center around you and your development as a student, as a resident, and most importantly, as a person. Our Resident Assistants (RA)s are students also who have been at the University for a while. They are chosen based upon many factors, such as their knowledge of on-campus and off-campus resources, their ability to listen, and their willingness to help in any situation that comes their way. RAs, along with RHAPs (our overnight staff), are also the people who patrol the property and help keep you safe!

But that’s not all! Along with always being available to you for questions and concerns in any aspect of your life, and patrolling to keep you safe, our staff also organizes what we call ‘programs’.

Often, our programs are designed to build relationships within the community. Last year, the Capricorn Community hosted a Block Party. We blocked off a section of the parking lot, brought in a DJ and free food. The 300 residents who showed up brought the rest of the party! Of course, no alcohol was served, and our staff and Orange County Sheriff’s Officers patrolled throughout the entire event to be sure everyone stayed safe.

Last year in the Aries Community, we hosted ‘Singled Out’. Just like the MTV Game Show, we had our two hosts, and a group of 50 men and 50 women who all competed for a date with our lucky contestants. Afterward, the two couples were taken on a date in a limousine to a local restaurant. The 150 people who stayed behind all had a good time as well, enjoying the music, free food, and a pool party which followed!

Remember I said something about your development as a person? Our programs are also designed to teach you things! We’ll often have presenters come in to hold sessions on a variety of topics to help your college career go as smoothly as possible. Just to name a few examples… SARC (the Student Academic Resource Center) comes to present on study skills, AEP (the Academic Exploration Program) and the Counseling and Testing Center come to help you pick a major, and help you figure out what you would like to do as a career. REACH Peer Education comes to give presentations on keeping yourself safe at parties. And I know you’ve heard just about all there is to know about safe sex, but you haven’t heard anything until you see their presentation!

We also partner with the UCF Police department to bring you presentations on your safety. Officers come to teach about keeping yourself safe wherever you may be. One of the best programs they offer for women is called RAD, Rape Aggression Defense. This 12-hour course not only teaches you actual techniques to use to defeat an attacker, but also the psychology of being safe in the first place.

And finally, our RA’s put on plenty of programs without any presenters… and these can be on any topic! You will receive a questionnaire from your RA today about your interests. Please fill this out and give it back to them—this is what they will use to design their programs. This entire system is designed completely around you, so it only works if you participate! We love it when you tell us what you want, because we love giving it to you!

And one more thing, speaking of getting involved: we publish this newsletter each month and we always ask for your opinion on topics we cover. We want to know what you think of the issues. We also love when residents write articles or just give us topics they’d like to see covered in an article. You can always reach us at [email protected].

Thanks for taking the time to read the newsletter, please check out the resources inside! I hope your move-in goes well, and that you feel right at home here in your new community! It’s going to be a great year. Welcome!

Sincerely,
John Iannone
Editor