UPDATES & NEWSLETTER Volume 7 | Spring 2016
MOVIN’ ON UP! While some think those working on a college campus have a break during the summer months, we know this is far from the truth. In Housing and Residence Life, we were busy welcoming new Jaguars, both students and staff, in addition to preparing for the opening of two new residence halls. In July, we welcomed three new Residence Life Coordinators (RLC) to the Housing and Residence Life team. Meg Sunga, Oak Hall RLC, originally hails from the Houston, Texas/Kansas City, Missouri area. Prior to accepting the position, she worked at Virginia Commonwealth University. Devin Legge, Elm Hall RLC, claims Florida as his home base, and comes to us via Alderson Broaddus University in West Virginia. Last Gabriel Horton, UV RLC, and a Georgia native, rounds out our team with housing experience from Georgia Southern University. July quickly turned into August, and ushered in a busy month for not only the Division of Enrollment and Student Affairs, but also for Housing and Residence Life. Aside from opening two new residence halls and welcoming our returning students back to campus, we also implemented a new, yet familiar, extended orientation program called Residence Orientation And Recreation (R.O.A.R) Camp for our new first year students . In addition, we moved from the Health Sciences Student Center into our new home in Oak Hall, and we planned a pretty smooth Move-In Day that was enjoyed by all. The Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony brought out dignitaries and special guests, but more importantly, we were able to welcome the university into our new home. As we move ahead into the fall season, we look forward to the August 22, 2016 Ribbon-cutting ceremony collaborations and successes we achieve together serving the Jaguar for Oak Hall. Nation. If you are interested in hosting programs at any of our locations, please contact us at residencelife@augusta.edu. We will direct you to the resource we use to manage our requests. And as always--Go Jags!
WEEK OF WELCOME AUGUST 17-26 TASTE OF AUGUSTA
Augusta University’s Week of Welcome created an opportunity for students to connect to campus resources, student life, the Augusta community, and fellow Jaguars! The Week featured events such as financial aid seminars, first generation focused events and even a Silent Disco Dance Party. The Augusta University community came together to celebrate the beginning of Fall 2016! The “Taste of Augusta” was an interactive event that allowed local businesses and university departments to promote their services and build relationships with new and returning students. With more than 300 students in attendance and nearly 40 vendors present, this was a fabulous way for students to better understand what the community has to offer and the resources that they have right here on campus! WEEK OF WELCOME AUGUST 17-26 MOVIE NIGHT
The SLE Movie Night was hosted by The Jaguar Production CREW as the first of their monthly movie series hosted at the Summerville Campus Amphitheatre. A student poll led to the viewing of Now You See Me 2. With over 250 students attending, the movie night was as an exceptional way to end the Fall 2016 Week of Welcome.
HEART WALK 2016 MARCH 5 AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
The Heart Walk is the American Heart Association’s premier event for raising funds to save lives from our nation’s No. 1 and No. 5 killers, heart disease and stroke. Designed to promote physical activity and heart-healthy living, the Heart Walk creates an environment that’s fun and rewarding for the entire family. Walk with friends, family and coworkers, and bond with along the way. This past March, there were approximately 5000 people that attended the CSRA Heartwalk at the Greenway. Augusta University is proud to say that there were 500 people that helped to make this fund raiser a success. For Heart Walk 2017, our division would like to increase participation and create teams in memory of Brenda Blue, who we have lost to this terrible disease.
In Memoriam
By Angela Baker, Director of Testing & Disability Svcs
Brenda Blue
Brenda Blue (1956-2016) served as Administrative Assistant I within the Office of Testing and Disability Services at Augusta University. She transferred to our office in October 2012 from Central Supply in the College of Dental Medicine and before that she worked in Human Resources and in the Technology and Transfer Department. She had been a member of our university since May 2006. Brenda had a lot of personality and truly cared about our students. She would ask them about their lives and how things were going. Many of them stopped by just to chat with her. Brenda was married to William Blue and they had two dogs – Taz and Tia. Anyone that truly knew Brenda knew all about her fur babies. Our office will not be the same without her.
Please visit the Division Website at: augusta.edu/student-affairs
OPEN PAWS FOOD PANTRY UPDATE The Open Paws Food Pantry has been picking up speed for a few months. The goal of the pantry is to provide students in need on both campuses with access to non-persishable food items, and we have been working hard to increase awareness about the program. Now with the help of the Division of Communications and Marketing, the development of a new logo was produced and turned into a sticker. This sticker was created to be placed on some of the pantry items such as Ramen and Cup O’ Noodle soups. Once there was enough to fill a small storage bin, the items were collected and used on one of the tables for the Lemonade Brigade (another Week of Welcome Event). “We wanted to bring the Open Paws Food Pantry out as early as possible to let the students know that we are here for them and their needs” stated Gina Thurman, the Assistant Dean of Student Life. “We want the students to come visit the pantry, even if it’s just to take a look around. We’ve had a really good response so far and it’s only going to grow bigger once word of mouth pushes it even farther”. A partnership with the Golden Harvest Food Bank has become a priority as we have created a location on each campus for the food pantry. The Summerville campus location is on the first floor of Bellevue Hall and the Health Sciences location is on the second floor of the Student Center next to the satellite location for Student Counseling & Psychological Services (SCAPS).
In addition to the Open Paws Food Pantry, there will be a dedicated webpage for more information on donating food items and / or monetary gifts. A student emergency fund account is being established for those students in dire circumstances that are beyond their control. The Division of Enrollment and Student Affairs is working hard to bring awareness to both campuses.
STUDENT COUNSELING & PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES NEW NAME, SAME PROFESSIONAL SERVICE On July 1, 2016, the Counseling Center officially changed its name to Student Counseling & Psychological Services or SCAPS for short. The name change reflects the recent hiring of 3 licensed psychologists and the introduction of the computerized Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms (CCAPS) measure that will be incorporated into the assessment and clinical treatment of our students. This measure will allow us to compare our students’ psychological functioning across time, for each client, as a center, and comparatively to a national sample through our partnership with the Center for Collegiate Mental Health at Penn State. Dr. Mark F. Patishnock, Licensed Psychologist and Director of Mental Health Services, shared that the name change “reflects the more holistic and comprehensive approach that Augusta University is taking to prevent and treat the complex array of mental health issues faced by our students today.” To schedule an appointment to visit a counselor on both campuses, please call 706-737-1471.
WELLNESS & RECREATION The Wellness Center: 11,170 check-ins during the month of August. That is a 20% increase over prior year, and a 66% increase from the first year of consolidation. Most used area: Basketball courts. Students comprise 86% of the check-ins – which is a jump of about 10% over prior year. We have also seen an increase in students participating in Sports clubs. We have several clubs returning this year, but have also added a few new ones. The archery and disc golf have been very successful in national competitions this past year. Sports Clubs: Soccer – Men’s [19] Volleyball – Men’s [12] Volleyball – Women’s [15] Competitive Clubs: Bass Fishing [8] Disc Golf [8] Jhakta Dance [12] Archery [4 competitive | 50 recreational] Recreational Clubs: Shooting Sports Martial Arts Rowing
FINANCIAL AID FILING FAFSA EARLY The FAFSA will be available three months earlier than previously; for the 2017-18 award year, that will be on October 1, 2016, rather than on January 1, 2017. The U.S. Department of Education has coined the term “Early FAFSA” for this change. You may also hear it called “Prior-prior year” as students will be using their tax Information from 2015 to apply for aid in fall 2017. Early FAFSA will have a positive, long-lasting impact on how students apply for federal aid and make postsecondary decisions. By having the FAFSA available earlier, students will be able to complete their federal aid application in the same timeframe as their Augusta University admissions application, streamlining the process. Students and their families will have more time to resolve any income verification requirements or supplemental requests from our office.