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Q: How many Residence Halls are there on campus?
There are currently two residence halls: Surfsite and the New Residence Hall. Surfsite Hall houses 93 men and women in double occupancy rooms on three floors, with three student Resident Assistants. Double rooms in Surfsite Hall are frequently tripled to make room for as many students as possible. The New Residence Hall, housing 320 men and women opened in Spring 2008 with quad, triple, double and single rooms with connecting bathrooms (two rooms with four students of the same gender sharing a bath). The bathroom has a separate shower stall and toilet stall and two sinks, so it is possible for all four students to use the bathroom at the same time. There are eight student Resident Assistants in the New Hall.Each room includes an extra long twin bed, desk, desk chair and wardrobe with drawers or chest of drawers for each resident and a microwave – refrigerator – freezer combination unit for each room. A professional Resident Director lives in each Hall.
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Q: What is your policy on alcohol and drugs?
The Maine Community College System Code of Conduct applies to all students at SMCC. The Code prohibits alcohol and drugs on campus, including in the residence halls, regardless of a student’s age. The Code also prohibits students from being on campus while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, regardless of a student’s age. Students who violate these policies are subject to sanctions for violating this portion of the Residence Hall Agreement and/or charges under the Student Code of Conduct. Students are responsible for and can also be charged for conduct violations or contract violations due to the behavior of their guests. Sanctions vary depending on the circumstances surrounding a particular violation but can be punitive (fines assessed to the student account) and/or educational (papers, community service). Violations of the Residence Hall Agreement or the Student Code of Conduct can lead to dismissal from the residence halls and/or the College.
Q: Can I smoke in my room?
Smoking and chewing tobacco are not allowed in the residence halls or within thirty feet of any College building exit or walkway.
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Q: Does everyone have a roommate?
No, there are eight single rooms in the New Residence Hall. Single room requests will be assigned on a first come, first served basis.
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Q: What about housing for second year students?
Housing is limited for returning students. Because returning students are more likely to know someone with whom they would like to live off-campus and because they are generally more mature and more prepared for that experience, 70% of the residence hall spaces are reserved for first time residence hall students. In the Spring, current residence hall students who are interested in returning to the residence halls for the Fall should submit their housing application packet as soon after pre-registration for returning students begins as possible. Returning applicants will be assigned on a first come, first served basis based on the date the Housing Office receives the completed housing application packet until the 30% of spaces allotted to returning students are filled. Because there is so much competition for these spaces, students must have a clear disciplinary record, both conduct and residence hall violations,with the College and a minimum of a 2.5 cumulative GPA at the time their application is submitted.
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Q: What about apartments off-campus or renting rooms in local homes?
Students are welcome to seek apartments or room rentals in the local community. Prices vary widely depending on the distance from the College and the specific town and/or neighborhood. An off-campus housing listserv is maintained by the Housing and Residence Life staff. Students can subscribe to the listserv Off Campus Housing List to receive information regarding local housing opportunities as they are provided to the College. Please keep in mind that the Off Campus Housing List is comprised of any local landlord who requests to be on the list and is not monitored or endorsed by the College. It can also include students looking for roommates. Once the student receives a listing in which he or she is interested, the student simply contacts the landlords directly. We highly recommend using all the caution you would normally use when investigating a property and signing a lease. The list is only available by subscribing to the listserv.
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Q: Can I have a phone in my room or cable TV? What about internet service?
Rooms are equipped with cable TV (one jack per room, student provides the TV and the coaxial cable) and high speed internet (one jack per resident -- wired – student provides the ethernet cable). Students pay a fee each semester in addition to room and board for these services. Fees are subject to change; please check the billing section of the web site for current fees. Students may purchase digital phone from Time Warner or contact the phone company for wired phone service, but most students just use a cell phone or a calling card from the courtesy phones in each building. Wireless internet is available in both residence halls; however, reception varies depending on the location in the building and is not guaranteed.
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Q: What items shouldn't I bring to the Residence Halls?
Candles, incense, Halogen lamps, microwaves, toasters, hot pots, electric skillets, etc. are not allowed in Residence Hall rooms because they are fire hazards. In addition, any container that previously held an alcoholic beverage is prohibited as these containers are viewed as evidence of consumption. Please see the student services downloads section of the web site to obtain a copy of the Residence Life Guide. A more extensive list of prohibited items may be found there.
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Q: Can I bring my stereo, computer?
Yes, you may bring a stereo and a computer, an IPOD, gaming system, etc. We also recommend headphones in the event that your roommate(s) and/or neighbors are trying to sleep or study while you are using these devices.
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Q: Can I bring a refrigerator?
No, residents may not bring their own refrigerators or microwaves. A micro-fridge is provided in every room for the residents to share with their roommate(s). The micro-fridge is a combination of a fridge, freezer and a microwave.
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Q: How is a roommate chosen for me? Can I choose my own roommate?
The Residence Hall Application requests basic information that will be used to match roommates in addition to the information the College already has available (major, age, etc.). Students may request a specific person as a roommate. These requests are accommodated if possible provided both students request each other and both students submit their completed application packets together.
The College reserves the right to make and alter room and roommate assignments to meet the needs of the College. This does mean that your room assignment could change between when you receive it and when you arrive for move in or that you could be consolidated mid-semester to make room for other students. It is important to note that students change significantly even after only a few weeks of being at College. This is one reason why our resident assistant staff are well-trained on mediation techniques so that students can learn to live with each other happily. Mediation is expected before a room change will be considered. Only emergency room changes (as determined by the staff) are permitted during the first two weeks of each semester.
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Q: How do I get mail and packages?
All mail is delivered to the New Residence Hall Front Desk. The New Hall Front Desk staff boxes the New Residence Hall mail in the mailboxes located at the front desk and then delivers the Surfsite mail to the mailboxes in the upper lobby at Surfsite. Students will receive a notice in their mailbox that they have a package and can pick it up at the Front Desk of the New Residence Hall.
The mailing address for all halls is:
Student Name
Southern Maine Community College
Name of Hall, Room Number
2 Fort Road
South Portland, ME 04106
The physical address for the New Residence Hall is 83 Fort Road. The physical address for Surfsite Hall is 75 Surfsite Road. You may need the physical address of your hall to register to vote in South Portland but should not direct any mail or packages to the Surfsite Hall physical address. Delivery services like UPS and FedEx cannot deliver to Surfsite directly; please do not send packages to this address in order to avoid lost packages. These packages are frequently mis-delivered somewhere in the community – though their tracking services will note they were delivered to SMCC -- and never recovered.
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Q: What about my meals?
All resident students are required to purchase a meal plan. Meal plan offerings vary from year to year in response to student needs and requests. Typically each meal plan offers a set number of all-you-care-to-eat meals in the dining hall each week and some “flex cash” for use in the Café each semester. A student uses his/her student ID card for payment at the register. In the Dining Hall, one meal deducts each time the card is swiped. In the Café, flex cash debits by the amount spent. For example, a student on the 14 meal plan (the default plan) gets 14 meals loaded each Friday. If a student on this plan eats every meal offered beginning at breakfast on Friday, he will run out of meals after breakfast on Wednesday and have no meals available until Friday at breakfast. The flex cash is for the entire semester; unused portions do not roll over from one semester to another and are not refundable.
The required meal plan cost per semester varies from year to year. Please check the billing section of the web site or call the Housing and Residence Life Office for the most up to date rates. Whatever the cost, the price includes costs for overhead and is the same for the fall as it is for the spring, regardless of student usage.
Beacon Bucks: Students who would prefer not to carry cash on campus may deposit funds into a Beacon Bucks account for use in the Dining Hall and the Café. There is a minimum initial deposit of $50 and subsequent $10 deposit minimum. These funds are debited from the student’s Beacon Bucks account on a dollar for dollar basis. For example, if a student purchases a $5 all-you-care-to-eat lunch meal, $5 is debited from the account. Beacon Bucks balances remain active until a student ceases to be enrolled and then is forfeited, so it is in the student’s best interest to deposit only funds that he or she intends to use. Beacon Bucks are considered part of a meal plan by the IRS and so are not subject to sales tax. Resident students most often use Beacon Bucks when they run out of flex cash on their meal plan.
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Q: Are the Residence Halls co-ed?
Currently, Surfsite is co-ed by floor – men on the basement, first and second floors, and women on the third floor. This results in a population that is roughly 2/3 male and 1/3 female. This can change from year to year to accommodate differences in the applicant population, though SMCC historically has more male applicants than female applicants for the residence halls. The New Residence Hall is co-ed by suite (same gender sharing a bath but could have opposite gender next door and/or across the hall).
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Q: Are pets allowed in the Residence Halls?
The only pets allowed are fish – maximum of one ten gallon tank per room.
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Q: Is there a curfew? What about guests?
There is no curfew for resident students; they may come and go from their assigned hall at their leisure. Guests are welcome with the permission of all the roommates and suitemates and must be escorted by their resident host at all times. A resident of one hall is considered a guest in the other hall. Overnight guests are permitted with the permission of the roommate and suitemates but may only stay for three nights in a seven day period. All residents are responsible for obtaining an overnight guest pass from the New Residence Hall Front Desk or the Surfsite RA on duty prior to 11 pm on the night the guest would like to stay. Guests must show a valid picture ID. Residents are responsible for the behavior of their guests and must escort their guests whenever they are in the building, including when in the resident’s room.
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Q: When do the Residence Halls close for vacations/breaks?
The residence halls close for the following breaks: Thanksgiving, Winter, and Spring Break. All students must leave the residence halls for those breaks but may leave their stuff.
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Q: What is there to do on campus for fun?
Resident Assistants and Student Life staff plan activities for students who live in the halls. RAs plan movie nights, bowling, pizza nights, game nights, trips to hockey and baseball games, holiday parties, snow football and more! Students who live in the residence halls are encouraged to get involved in helping to plan these activities or other campus clubs.
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Q: What is a Resident Assistant, how do I become one?
A Resident Assistant is a full time student who has been selected and trained in areas of peer counseling, activity programming, college policies and other topics to assist in helping you. They serve as primary resources to voice concerns or go to in a time of crisis. Announcements are made for openings for RA positions for the following academicsemester when openings are available. Applications can be picked up from a Resident Director, from the NRH Front Desk or in the Housing Office in 109 Campus Center. Resident Assistants do not get a salary, but do receive a free single room and meal plan when the dining hall is open.
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Q: What are the Room and Board charges?
Please check the Tuition and Fees section of the web site for up to date charges.
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Q: How do I apply for Housing?
There is a separate application for housing than the one used to apply to the College. We recommend you apply as soon after you have registered for classes as possible. We receive many more applicants than we can house, but we also see quite a lot of turnover in our waiting list as the Summer passes. Please see the page on the housing assignment process for more detailed information.
Eligible students who submit complete application packets are assigned to residence hall spaces on a first come, first served basis until the halls are full. Then they are assigned in that order to the appropriate waiting list (male or female). Students on the waiting list will be contacted when a space is available for them up to and including the first week or so of class, until the waiting list is exhausted. Students may remain on the on-campus waiting list until they get an on-campus space or they can opt to find an apartment. Students and their families are comfortable with different levels of risk when it comes to this decision, and only you can decide which options are right for you. Every year is different, and the Housing and Residence Life Staff has no way to accurately guess what the likelihood that an individual number will come up on the waiting list. If you choose to find off-campus housing, you should email mreslife@smccme.edu right away to take your name off the waiting list. Once you are offered a space, you will forfeit your damage deposit if you refuse it or if you accept it and then cancel the space.
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Q: Are there accommodations for married students?
Unfortunately, we have no accommodations for married students at this time.
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Q: I was on the waiting list but decided to get an apartment instead. I canceled my housing application by emailing mreslife@smccme.edu before I was placed in a space. When will I get my deposit back?
The Housing and Residence Life Office must request the Finance Office to refund deposits. This is done as eligible cancellations are received. The Finance Office Staff then credits the deposit to the student’s account at the Student Billing Office. Assuming there are no other charges on the account, students can expect to receive a check from the Billing Office when checks are cut. For a schedule regarding when checks will be cut, students should contact the Billing Office.
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Q: My housing application packet was returned to me. Why?
Incomplete housing application packets are not accepted and are returned to the applicant. All returned application packets include a letter to the applicant that details which items were missing from the application packet. Even if the student submitted some information to other department(s), the items requested must still be included with the housing application packet. Students should include all missing items with the application packet directly and resend the application packet as soon as possible.
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Q: My GPA is below 2.5, and I need to submit a Housing Appeal Form with my application packet. Or, I don’t have a GPA because I got a GED or was homeschooled. Should I even bother to apply?
YES! Students who do not have a 2.5 cumulative high school, prior college or SMCC GPA are routinely admitted to the residence halls with conditions. These students can expect to be placed on an Academic Success Plan as a condition of their admission to housing. Being on an ASP typically means starting out on Residence Hall Conduct Probation (which means that one violation could lead to eviction without refund) and being required to attend academic success workshops, meet with advisors and the like. Expectations of students on ASPs vary from year to year and from student to student, depending on the needs of the student and available student services offerings. Academic Success Plan letters are emailed to the student email account shortly after move-in. Students who submit a GPA appeal are placed in the residence halls or on the waiting list based on the date the completed application packet is received. A GPA appeal will not delay processing of the residence hall application packet.
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Q: I cannot pay the $250 damage deposit and need to submit a Housing Appeal Form. What is the likelihood my appeal will be granted?
Because the deposit is a damage deposit, deposit appeals are only granted if the student has enough anticipated financial aid to cover the student’s entire cost of education (tuition, fees, room and board) and the $250 damage deposit. In the event that a student has enough anticipated aid to cover the entire cost of education and the $250 damage deposit, the $250 damage deposit is added to the student’s account with the Student Billing Office to be paid when the anticipated aid is credited to the student’s account. The damage deposit cannot be waived entirely. A residence hall application that is dependent on a deposit appeal will not be processed until the deposit appeal can be granted based on the above criteria. In the event that there is not enough anticipated aid to cover the entire cost of education and the $250 damage deposit and/or the student has not yet submitted the FAFSA and/or the Financial Aid Office has not yet received the student’s FAFSA, the student’s residence hall application packet will be considered incomplete and returned to the student.
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Q: Is it true that the Residence Hall Agreement is for the entire academic year (August – May).
Yes. Students who choose to move off campus after the Fall semester but remain enrolled at the College will forfeit the $250 damage deposit.
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Q: I have a disability and need a single room or an accessible room as an accommodation. What should I do?
Please contact Mark Krogman at mkrogman@smccme.edu or Sandra Lynham at slynham@smccme.edu to request accommodations. One of the disability services coordinators must approve any disability related accommodations. |
Student Life 
