Updates

April




 I check my email often and will always respond within 24 hours. I can also be reached by call or text message at 919-416-2878. Please remember that I am often on duty until late in the evening, so please avoid calling before 9:00am unless it is an emergency. Your students will see me often on hall and can always feel free to knock on my door ( if they need something.


On Saturday, April 5th, NCSSM’s 2025 Prom “Medieval Promenade” will take place in the Museum of Life and Science. Pre-sale tickets are $50 and may be purchased here until April 12th, and day-of tickets will be $60 in exact change. If your student is planning to stay off campus on the night of Prom, please have them fill out an Overnight Orah pass request with exact details of their travel plans (including address, mode of transportation, and full name of their host) by Midnight on April 1st. No concessions will be made if this date is missed. 


Students may request to bring their vehicle from home to campus for the day of Prom. Please visit the NCSSM Prom Website permissions tab to learn more about important dates and deadlines for Prom vehicle use. 


Parents! Parent volunteers can help with food prep, clean-up, decorating, ticket sales, coat check, and more, and are always essential for creating a beautiful Prom night. Sign up here if you’re interested in lending a helping hand!


For more information about our prom, check out the NCSSM Prom Website, and feel free to email prom@ncssm.edu with any questions. 




Residence halls will close on Friday, April 11th at 5:00pm and will reopen on Monday, April 21st at 12:00pm. Since this is a long break students must unplug all items in their room, including fridges and fish tanks. Students should properly defrost their fridge to avoid puddles or mold growth over the break. Students are encouraged to take home as many items as possible that they will not need for the remainder of the year. Students are also advised to return to campus with boxes to prepare for move out.



I wanted to make sure everyone knows what to expect from me in regards to regular hall updates. On the 1st of each month I will post an update to the blog section of the hall google site and send an email alerting you that the update is live. These posts will include recaps of the past few weeks on hall, updates on major hall and campus events, reminders about upcoming events and deadlines, and photos of the student experience on campus. Throughout the month I will also add more photos to the photos section of the hall site. 



The Senior Leadership Campus Service process is coming to a close. Senior Leadership announcements will be sent out on Tuesday, April 22 at 4:00pm and applicants will have until Thursday, April 24 to submit their decisions to program coordinators. Please note that the SLSC process does not account for every senior campus service assignment. Juniors should reach out to any employees that they may be interested in working with next year if they chose not to participate in the SLCS process. They can also contact Justin Plummer (plummer@ncssm.edu), Campus Service Coordinator and Associate Director of Student Services, if they have any questions. 



The Spring Final Assessment Schedule has been shared by Academic Programs.  Synchronous final assessment blocks are arranged to minimize exam conflicts and to minimize conflicts with the AP Exams scheduled for Friday, May 16.  Academic Programs will work directly with students and instructors to resolve those conflicts in the weeks before the end of the semester.  As in previous semesters, Academic Programs have indicated deadlines for submitting projects, papers, and take-home exams by academic discipline to ensure that all asynchronous assessments are not due at the same time. 


Due to the volume of potential requests and our staffing ability, we cannot provide transports prior to 7:30 AM or after 9:30 PM. 













 Move-out Reminders

Juniors and Seniors will receive an email with information concerning move-out in the next week or two. In the meantime, best practice is to start evaluating which items you may be able to take home over the upcoming extended weekend and spring break.  The more items you can get home over our final extended weekends of the year, the easier move-out will be for you. Good items to consider taking home are winter coats and clothes, extra furniture, and large items. 



Latin America Fest

Looks like we’ve got a mystery on our hands… Latin America Fest is happening on May 3rd from 7-8:30 PM in the ETC Auditorium, and the clues all point to an unforgettable night. Join us as we unmask the beauty of Latin culture through dancing, spoken word, music performances, and more. Grab your magnifying glasses and get ready; because this is one case you won’t want to miss!





January Term

Throughout January of each year, students take a break from regular coursework during J-Term to engage in employee-led educational opportunities that extend beyond the classroom. Examples of past J-Term experiences include Capes and Culture, Introduction to Aviation, the Science of Breadmaking, Fantastic Fungi, and extended travel to Costa Rica or the American West. J-Term begins on January 8th and ends on January 30th. You can view your student’s assigned J-Term class or classes on Blackbaud.


January Term (J-Term) is an essential part of the NCSSM Academic Program. Since class meeting patterns are different during J-Term, attendance is calculated differently. One unexcused hour of missed class will be recorded as one unexcused absence. J-Term is considered its own term for attendance purposes. The number of accumulated absences reverts to zero at the beginning of spring semester.


During J-term, 4E will be doing a mix of programs including food runs, open gyms, and lazer tag to keep things fresh!












CCs and Campus Safety Staff On-Call

CCs are available 24 hours a day to assist your students. The Bryan CC desk is staffed each day from 7:30am to 1:00am.  All other CC building offices are staffed beginning at 6:30pm each day. Outside of these hours there will always be 2 CCs on call while students are on campus. The contact numbers for the on-call CCs are posted at each CC desk and can be viewed here. If your student has an emergency they are encouraged to reach out to the on duty CCs. 

NCSSM also has Campus Safety Officers available 24 hours. They can be contacted at 919-416-2911.

The Clinic

Student Health Services, often referred to as the Clinic, is located on the first floor of the Hunt Residence Hall. The Clinic is staffed by a nurse, medical assistant, and a family nurse practitioner. Our medical director oversees the Clinic’s daily operation and is present in the Clinic one day a week. The Clinic is staffed and equipped to manage most acute and chronic illnesses that occur while students reside at NCSSM. Common over-the-counter medications, bandages, splints, and crutches are dispensed at no additional charge to students. Prescriptions, if required, can be picked up from a local pharmacy. Some problems may require additional care, in which case students are referred to area professionals. Families will be notified if this referral is necessary. 

Students are prohibited from keeping certain types of prescription medications in their rooms (e.g., narcotics, psychotropics, stimulants). These medications must be retained and distributed by the Clinic. Students may keep over-the-counter medications in their rooms for their personal use (e.g., pain relievers, cold medications, stomach remedies, herbal remedies, vitamins, etc.).

The clinic is open Monday - Friday from 8:00am to 4:00pm. After hours and on the weekends students can reach out to CCs on duty for help; the CCs will contact a 24 hour telephone nursing service called UNC Nurse Connect to seek advice on how to aid your student. 

Students may schedule telehealth appointments and in-person appointments, as well as medication drop-off/pick-up appointments. The Clinic is not open to drop-in appointments as it has been in the past.


SAB


As students adjust to the rigors of NCSSM it is also important for them to make time to have fun, relax, and enjoy all parts of the Science and Math experience. To that end, it is important that you and they know about the NCSSM Student Activities Board and all the amazing opportunities that it offers students. 


SAB is made up of student and employee volunteers from across campus. Under the supervision of Kori Willoughby, the Student Activities Coordinator, SAB meets every other Thursday throughout the year to plan activities and events for the student body. Meetings are open to all students.


Some popular SAB events, outside of major campus-wide events like Welcome Week, the Halloween Dance & Costume Contest, Winter Semi-Formal Dance, Prom, and End-of-Year Celebrations, include:

You can find out more about SAB and see upcoming events on their website. 


Increasing Workload

Around this time students will also notice their workload increasing. It is imperative for them to develop strong time management skills and learn to seek out help as they begin to face these new challenges. If needed, students can reach out to their CC and/or any of the following resources:

Residential Education Courses: All juniors take RE102; in this course they learn about academic success strategies. The skills they develop and the resources provided by their instructor will be helpful to revisit as their workload increases. 

Residence Halls Closing in October

Just a quick reminder that the Residence Halls will be closing once before our next update:

Students will complete an electronic Extended Sign-Out Form during hall meeting. On this form they indicate where they are going for the break, who they are traveling with, and how they are getting to their destination. If students have specific questions about checkout procedures for Extended Weekends, they should speak to me.