Student Affairs Update - Mar 23

03/23/2018

Good afternoon students,

It's been a long week, but your JSU team is here and will remain focused on making the campus better than it was before. It will take us some time to reach our goals, but we will reach them. There has been tremendous progress this week, and yet I recognize you all want to see the end game. This is what I can report at this time:

Students who reside off campus

Late this morning, Rochelle Smith (Director of Residence Life), Brooke Lyon (Director of Housing Operations), Tyrone Smiley (Assistant Director of Housing Operations) and I visited off campus apartment complexes to ask questions for JSU students who reside off campus. We stopped by Winn Place Apartments, The Reserve, Gamecock Village and Park Place III. All of these facilities endured the brunt of the storm. If you reside in one of these off campus residences, please contact them about when you can return to collect your belongings. The Reserve and Gamecock Village have information available for residents on their Facebook page. Everyone we spoke with was kind and understanding. They are in the same predicament as JSU: they want to let you back in, but their buildings have been deemed unsafe. Be patient and work with them as best you can. JSU may have additional rooms available for off campus students on a first come, first served basis. Please see the JSU Strong website for an application.  

Rochelle, Brooke and Tyrone have completed the survey for students who reside off campus and who might be interested in relocating to Ft. McClellan for the remainder of the term. The survey should be available soon on the JSU Strong website.

Offers from community residents to house displaced students

I've received numerous offers from kind and caring residents in Jacksonville, Anniston and Oxford who are willing to house displaced students. These offers come from individuals and community organizations. I appreciate the offers, but there is no physical way for me to connect everyone with an offer. Thus, I am urging those who have expressed willingness to open their homes to advertise through the Disaster Recovery Center located in the blue tent on Mountain Street, N.W., adjacent to JSU Stadium. It is serving as the central repository for assistance for both students and city residents.

Students who reside on campus

The Housing staff has been working tirelessly to identify space, furniture, beds and mattresses to ensure a smooth transition for on campus residents and all of them deserve our gratitude. Rochelle, Brooke and Tyrone, along with Charissa Davis, Charlotte Homesley, Morgan Ingram, Kaitlin Humphrey, Michael Norris, Peggy Byrne, LeMarques McClide, Travis Smith and Bobbie Chanler, are "all hands on deck" for you. Others such as Christopher Moon, Lauren McClendon, Allison McInnis, Devon Totherow, Aliah Aytch, Marjory Lin Molina, Logan Allen, BaShari James and a host of Resident Assistants are preparing for the influx of returning students. We do have a plan in place and I will let you know the details of the plan on Monday. If all goes well with the recovery we are hoping next Friday and Saturday will be the return date for on campus residents. Keep your fingers crossed!

Academics

The Provost, Deans and Registrar plan to meet Wednesday to talk about how they can assist you with completing the term. They are working together to develop ways for students to complete the semester and those ways may vary by school. Please stay in touch with your professors, because they will be able to provide the specific details regarding the courses in which you are now enrolled and make accommodations on a case by case basis.

I hope to provide you with an update sometime Monday about their progress. Regardless, all of them have been working behind the scenes to formulate plans, assist faculty, and reach out to you. Make sure you see official JSU communication mechanisms for official news about JSU especially as it relates to academics. For instance, please see the JSU Strong website FAQs regarding registration for summer and fall 2018. And remember that responding to 8500+ students' academic needs given the predicament we're in is mind boggling to say the least. You could not have a better Provost in Dr. Rebecca Turner, and believe me when I tell you she has your best interest first and foremost. 

We will continue to work through the weekend and prepare for a full day Monday. I will provide another update Monday afternoon. Until then #jsustrong, #gamecockstrong.

Kind regards,

Timothy B. King, Ph.D.
Vice President for Student Affairs