<p>My student belongs to a group that performs at freshman orientation every year. Freshman move in is about a week before the other three classes are allowed to move in.</p>
<p>Every year the group is denied early move in by the housing staff. Students leave their summer jobs early and either rent a hotel room or sleep on the floor of a friend's apartment. Most of them sleep on the floor of a friend's apartment. The students who live close drive to the university and after their performance drive back home to gather their belongings and then drive back to the school to move in.</p>
<p>They need prep time as senior members of the group have left and their parts have to be performed by a remaining member. They also work on new material for their performance. This is their chance to be seen by the incoming freshmen and they hold auditions for their group within the first month after classes begin.</p>
<p>This year we met the VP of Student Affairs at a university function and were invited to meet with the VP privately as he wanted parent feedback. One of the items we discussed was the early move in situation. The VP said if they were invited to perform they should be allowed to move in early.</p>
<p>The group applied for early move in. The response was that the staff felt that it would be a lot work to have their group move in early.</p>
<p>So, we contacted the VP, remarking that it appeared from their words and actions that the university staff did not care about the students. This is the response we received somewhat paraphrased to eliminate any identification of the group or university.</p>
<p>We have many, many requests for early arrival (not limited to student organizations) and we will be extremely busy this summer with conferences, camps, etc. So, our staff will be scrambling to the last minute getting rooms ready. Every additional person who is permitted to arrive early strains our ability to be ready for opening. My understanding is that the group is scheduled to perform late in the orientation period and should not need to arrive early and though I understand their desire to have prep time, we just can't get them in prior to the scheduled opening.</p>
<p>Our student tells us that other students who are allowed to move in early are international students and students with health concerns (have no idea who that includes).</p>
<p>Our son ran into the same bureaucratic double talk when trying to move his stuff into an off campus appt run by the university 6 hrs early one year!! You would have thought he had asked to move into the Presidents home! He wasn’t even going to sleep there that night and other students [ who were also internationals] had moved into the complex that day. When moving into USC it was no problem to move in early- he just had to pay $50 for the additional night. It all depends on the college and in part whether those running the student housing operations are union members, and can be forced to be accommodating or flexible by the college, or not.</p>
<p>I would check and see what the policy is for early move-in for athletes. If athletes can move in early, I think they best rethink their response. I would suggest becoming as “vocal” as required. ;)</p>
<p>At my school, the athletic department has to pay for the student-athletes to move in early. I know with the football team, part of that payment is to help freshmen move in.</p>
<p>I’m a college VP for Student Affairs so perhaps I can give you some details.</p>
<p>It sounds as if the VP spoke the first time before asking for feedback from the Housing staff. College housing is generally used over the summer for summer school and camps, and then every room must be cleaned and serviced for the start of the academic year. There is typically very limited time between the end of the summer semester and the start of fall, and the task of turning rooms around is generally more than the permanent custodial staff of any college can handle - much of the work often has to be contracted out. If the school is not in an urban area, there are probably a limited number of available contractors to whom the college can turn, so there’s a very real limit to how many rooms can be addressed in a given number of days.</p>
<p>Freshmen have to come in for Orientation, and international students arrive during a window of time and have nowhere else to go. I’m not sure about those with “health concerns” - I’d guess that’s handicapped-accessible room residents, but other than students who are visually-impaired and may need to learn the terrain, I’m not sure why health concerns would constitute a need. The Resident Assistant staff in Housing have to come back early for training and hall prep. Some athletic teams have to be back early to prepare for early-fall schedules. Once all the groups that must be accommodated are accounted for, the college is probably right at the physical limit of the number of rooms they can have ready before the fall opening. I’m guessing that your student’s musical group performs voluntarily at Orientation and is not required by a university faculty or staff member to be there early, so their priority (and those of the other organizations that request to voluntarily return early) would be lower than those students who are required to be back early.</p>
<p>I can assure you that university staff are not in their jobs primarily for the money - the money isn’t that great. Staff, as opposed to faculty, are usually on 12-month contracts, so they’re not in it for the lifestyle flexibility either. Most of the career staff with whom I’ve worked really do stay in their jobs because they care about students. But there’s always a limit to how far they can go to meet the special requests of students or parents, because many special requests throughout the year that they might accommodate would inevitably result in dozens of similar requests the following year that they couldn’t manage.</p>
<p>This response from housing sounds plausible to me. Most college campuses I’ve visited in the Summer are teeming with athletic and academic campers, so it doesn’t surprise me that this is the case right up until Fall move-in. </p>
<p>While I would share singersmom’s consternation if I were invited to perform but not offered accommodations, I see this as the students’ issue entirely. If they are fed up with the situation they should refuse to perform. In this day of dwindling revenues, I’d be surprised if the school would eliminate camps or increase staff to to make it happen for the performers though…and if they did, the cost would just be passed on to singersmom anyway.</p>
<p>It may depend on what you are asking for. It would be ideal if the performers could move in to their rooms early, as they will be arriving with all their stuff. This group could involve students from different dorms/apts. Perhaps the student performers could “compromise” by asking to be temporarily placed in a lounge or set of rooms in one of the dorms that is already prepped/cleaned or one where summer students/RAs are moving out. It will not be ideal for the performers but may be equivalent to sleeping on the floor of a friends apt. Better than having to pay for hotel accommodations.</p>
<p>This is what our football team did for the most part last fall. They were put into one building that had a cafeteria in the same complex and it was a short walk to the football building. Most of the players moved into that building on two or three floors for 2 weeks. Also, some of the coaches and other staff members stayed on the floors too. They all moved out to their off-campus apartments or to their assigned rooms a couple days before the freshmen showed up.</p>
<p>I was expected to be back at school at that same time as an athletic training student to work with the football team, but I was able to move directly into my room in another building in that same complex.</p>
<p>I agree with Schmoo. They just should not perform. If they need student groups to entertain at orientation and can’t get them, they’ll change their policy.</p>
<p>Wow… D2’s school has been incredibly lenient with move in and move out days. For two summers now, she’s stayed at school, with only a week and a half between deadline to move out after finals are over, and when summer students are allowed to move into their summer dorms. Both years, the housing office has been accomodating and let her stay in her dorm until she could move into summer housing. Also, when we had to return her two days early last January, after winter break, because had we waited for the day we were originally planned to leave, we would have been snowed in at home, we would have been delayed a day getting her back, and I would have missed my return flight home (I was driving back with her in her car). I called them, explained the situation, and they said no problem… just stop by campus safety when we arrived. There have been a couple of other occasions when she’s had to return to campus early, and they’ve had no problem with it. I will say, other than the January fiasco, she does have to fill out a form ahead of time, requesting early move-in or late move-out, but it’s always been approved.</p>
<p>Not performing is not an option. For the groups that perform this is a recruitment tool so freshmen can see what the groups have to offer.</p>
<p>And, yes, early move in refers to move in for their fall housing assignments.</p>
<p>I guess I should not have been so surprised. After all this was the housing staff that ordered the wrong size mattresses for an entire dorm. Getting rooms ready for six students would probably be too much for them.</p>
<p>OP, does the school in question have a marching band that arrives early for band camp? How is housing for band camp handled, just for comparison?</p>
<p>Does this music group have monetary support from the student activity fund or something of that nature? It seems logical if the group is the talent at an orientation function, funds for hotel rooms for the early arrival period would be a reasonable expense.</p>
<p>A large university marching band that I am familiar with tries to arrange for early dorm move-ins for band camp, but when that is just not possible for some of them puts those students up in the nearby Holiday Inn.</p>
<p>I have looked at the University’s website. It states:</p>
<p>Student groups who participate in First-Year Orientation or who perform an essential university function prior to regular upperclass move-in on Thursday, August 20, 2009 may be eligible for early move-in.</p>
<p>Under payment options:<br>
Our group is eligible for free housing due to participation in Orientation.</p>
<p>What I have discovered is that one group performs on Friday, August 21st and the remaining groups perform on Sunday, August 23rd.</p>
<p>The University’s stance is that since they perform after the regular upperclass move in date of August 20th none of the groups need to move in early.</p>
<p>Never mind that most of the groups have lost 1/3 of their members due to seniors who graduated. Obviously the VP and his housing staff don’t realize that performers can’t just go on stage without 1/3 of their members and wing it.</p>
<p>The easiest way to have the kids allowed to move in early is if they are part of the orientation committee that are in place to help those who are moved in early. I can see why they don’t want these kids there early if they are not busy the entire time they are there.</p>
<p>Looks like the school figures it is more for your group’s benefit than an essential function for the orientation. Therefore, early move in not needed.</p>
<p>The groups that perform are the only student based entertainment the freshmen see.</p>
<p>The Band is coming early - arriving on Sat August 15th for Leadership training with band camp beginning Mon August 17th. </p>
<p>The Band does NOT perform at orientation. Their first performance is Sat, September 5th.</p>
<p>NO group that performs at orientation was allowed to move in early although the move in form has specific information on the form for groups that do move in early.</p>
<p>As far as being busy the entire time they are there - they are busy the entire time they are there. My H went back with our D the first year she was in the group. They spent 4 to 5 hours a day practicing - 1/3 of the group graduates every year. So, other group members have to take over the parts. They also begin practicing new selections.</p>
<p>At the same time they are living in apartments or hotels and since they are not on campus they have to find places to practice off campus - usually one of the apartments. Since everyone is scattered all over and not everyone has a car members with cars have to go around picking everyone up. Then there is breakfast, lunch and dinner for everyone.</p>
<p>The members who live close to campus then have to go back to their homes after the performance to pick up their belongings to move in. So, not only have they left their summer jobs early they also have two trips back and forth to school. (Since they perform so late this year the students will go back to their homes the weekend after school starts for the remainder of their belongings).</p>
<p>Leaving possessions in their cars or moving their possessions into their hotel room or friend’s apartment is not an option. The area is high crime and I don’t even feel safe or comfortable staying at hotels close to the university.</p>
<p>My H told me the apartments were crowded with everyone’s luggage - they live out of suitcases for a week.</p>
<p>But they want to be a part of the welcome to incoming freshmen so they do what they need to do. They didn’t even look at early move in until I pointed out this was an available option and they should apply. So, every year they have applied and every year they have been turned down.</p>
<p>So, when the VP of Student Affairs asked us what we, as parents, would like to see changed we said we believed if the university invited student groups to perform and had the option to apply for early move in as per their website we did not understand why every year they were denied.</p>
<p>He said,in person,he agreed and since housing reported to him he would make it happen. Now, he says since they don’t perform until Sunday, Aug 23rd they don’t need to move in early before Thursday, Aug 20th which is upperclass move in day. Classes begin Aug 24th.</p>