UWRF-SA-Housing Procedures

Room Charges

The charge for your residence hall room appears on your university account. If you change rooms where your billing amount would be different (for example, moving from a double room to a suite) or leave campus, the weekly prorated amounts appear on your university account. Further information about university accounts is available on the Accounts Receivable and Cashiers Office site. Academic year and semester contracts begin on the announced move-in date for each student.

Requesting an Exemption from the Two-Year Residency Requirement

Carefully read pages 1-3 of the housing contract.
If the request is to commute from the home of a parent or legal guardian living within an approved commuting district, pick up a commuter request form at the Department of Residence Life in University Center. If you are an incoming student, a commuter application is also available online. You may only commute from the home of a parent or legal guardian, not a sibling or other relative. The completed commuter request must be signed by the student and a parent. However, the parent's signature must be notarized and submitted to the Department of Residence Life, University Center. If you currently have a housing contract and are approved for commuting, the $100.00 housing deposit will be forfeited.
All other requests for exemption from the two-year residency requirement must be submitted in writing (hard copy or email, but not handwritten) and addressed to: Director of Residence Life, University Center. Email messages should be addressed to: housing@uwrf.edu. Requests must include student name and student ID number. After carefully reviewing the exemptions section of the housing contract mentioned in step 1, the student must provide in detail the reasons for requesting exemption consideration.
A decision will be returned to the student by letter. If the request is approved, the student may move out of university housing with forfeiture of the $100.00 housing deposit.
If the request is denied, the letter will outline the appeal process, including how to contact the Chair of the Residential Living Committee, a student committee that hears all exemption appeals. The student will be required to schedule an exemption appeal before a regularly-scheduled Residential Living Committee meeting, normally held every two weeks. The decision of the committee will be returned to student by letter.
Incoming students not yet living on campus and students requesting an exemption after the final Residential Living meeting of the year may direct appeals to Gregg Heinselman, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, University Center.

Extended Housing

At the beginning of each fall term we anticipate having over 100% occupancy. When all of our regular residence hall rooms are filled, we place students in extended (temporary) housing. Students placed in extended housing will receive adequate furniture (one bed per person and shared dressers, desks, tables and chairs) for their needs. Extended housing spaces may be in lounges or other locked and secure areas of residence halls that comply with living regulations. We realize this is a slight inconvenience and you will receive a small credit back to your university account for time living in extended housing. Find out more about extended housing.

Leaving Mid Year

Before leaving the residence halls, it is important to know that the two-year housing requirement remains in effect and enforced. Exemptions to the policy are clearly explained in our housing contract. It is important to review this document, especially as it relates to housing exemptions and commuter policies.

Unfortunately, some of our current freshmen and sophomores enter into lease agreements with off-campus landlords. They do this without first requesting and receiving approval for exemption from the university housing requirement. They later apply for an exemption and their requests are denied because they do not meet the requirements outlined in the contract. The majority of housing exemption requests received are denied. We caution students not to place themselves in such situations.

If you meet the requirements, you must contact your hall manager, who will provide paperwork explaining the process of checking out of the residence halls. Your housing deposit will be forfeited if you break an annual housing contract, and you will receive a pro-rated amount back on pre-paid housing fees in your university account.

Single Room Policy/Loss of Roommate

A single room is only available after the four week freeze on room/hall changes and after all extended housing is empty. If a student residing in the residence hall loses his/her roommate during the year, he/she has the following options depending on available space:

Participate in the consolidation process within the hall.

Individuals may choose their own roommate and must inform the HM within two days. All moves must take place within seven working days.
If all extended housing is empty, an individual may keep the room as a single and pay the adjusted rate. The individual will be billed for the single room from the week his/her roommate checked out or the week the halls opened (if roommate was a no-show). (This option will guarantee another student is not assigned to your room.)
Students who do not choose to keep their room as a single and pay the adjusted rate may be assigned a roommate at any given point depending on the need. Depending upon the waiting list to get into that hall, a roommate from another hall may be assigned to them.

Medical and Disability Single Rooms - A very limited number of single rooms will be available to accommodate medical and disability circumstances. Requests for these singles must be submitted as early as possible with required documentation to the Disability Services Office: 102 Davee Library. Contact Disability Services at (715)425-3531 or mark.r.johnson@uwrf.edu. The Disability Services Office will render a decision and notify the student and the Department of Residence Life.

Posting, Solicitation and Mailings Guidelines

What You Need to Know!

The following guidelines were developed with regard for effective and available space utilization, demonstration of support for campus-related programs and services, and an understanding that the halls are student living environments. We hope you find them helpful and useful as you communicate with residence hall students about your events and activities!

Helpful Posting Guideline Information...

University individuals, organizations or departments requesting to have promotional materials posted in the residence halls must deliver them to the Department of Residence Life, located in the Involvement Center, 170 University Center.
One poster per residence hall, no larger than 11” by 17” with Residence Life approval, will be permitted for posting in the main lobby on a “Campus Events” bulletin board. Postings that are not properly submitted will be removed by hall staff.
All approved posters, flyers, or announcements must include contact information and will be posted by Residence Life staff on a space-available basis. When dropping off materials for approval, please be sure to leave contact information in the event there are questions about the materials.
All posting materials must be submitted to Residence Life for distribution to residence halls. They will be displayed at the main desks of each hall on a space available basis.
Promotional materials promoting the use of alcohol or other drugs, using profanity or implying sexual, racial, or other harassment will not be approved. Residence Life staff are not responsible for how materials are handled by residents. Approved Residence Hall Governance and programming groups and Residence Life staff may post announcements in the residence halls. These announcements may be posted in hall lobbies and corridors on a space-available basis.
Unauthorized posting of materials on individual student room doors, including door hangers and slipping materials under room doors, is prohibited.

Solicitation in the Residence Halls

Solicitation in the residence halls is never allowed. This includes, but is not limited to knocking on doors, sliding items under student doors, and putting door hangers on doorknobs. Residents should report all violations to the Hall Manager or University Police immediately. Individuals or student organizations found violating the no solicitation policy will be referred to the Residence Life/University conduct system.
Commercial activities or door-to-door solicitation will not be allowed in residence halls, but designated members of approved campus organizations may utilize hall main lobbies to present their viewpoints by discussion or materials following approval of the Hall Council of the facility.
A member of the organization must be present at the table while the materials are being distributed.
The manner of presentation must not interfere with the flow of traffic, not constitute harassment to residents, and must be done in a responsible fashion so that the information/discussion is conducted on a voluntary basis with student residents.
Recognized student organizations may reserve lounges in specific residence halls for informational meetings, candidate meetings, or presentations. Lounges may be reserved by contacting the Hall Council of the facility. Hall Council information may be obtained by contacting an Area Coordinator for Residence Life at (715)425-4444.

Residence Hall Mailings

Recognized student organizations, campus affiliated groups, or offices wishing to send items to each resident must pre-address each piece, have items sorted by residence hall in room number order, and deliver them to the Department of Residence Life for hall delivery. Please allow at least 3 business days for distribution. Exceptions are made on a case by case basis for governance related issues and academic programs.
All mailings should be addressed as follows:
Name or (Resident of)

Room Number

Residence Hall

(in room number order)
All approved mailings that meet the requirements may not be larger than an 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper or a 5 x 7 sized envelope.
Non-University affiliated businesses and organizations requesting to mail items to each resident must obtain mailing labels from Institutional Research (there may be a cost associated with this process if you have the labels printed. Otherwise, you will receive a spreadsheet of your labels and your organization can print the labels) and mail the items via U.S. mail.

Campaigning in the Residence Halls

Active and diverse campus dialogue on political and civic issues is critical to accomplishing the University Mission of graduating engaged citizens.

The Department of Residence Life understands how important elections of all levels are to the integrity and future of America and is committed to ensuring that students are knowledgeable and prepared to vote. For specific guidelines regarding campaigning in the residence halls, stop by the Department of Residence Life for more information.

Campus Charitable Donation Collections

Those wishing to leave boxes in the main lobbies of the residence halls should contact Residence Life for approval. If approved, boxes must be dropped off and picked up at each residence hall main desk. Boxes should be properly labeled with the name of the program, contact name and phone (boxes not properly labeled may be removed), and checked daily for items. Boxes may be left no longer than one week. Boxes should be no larger than 2ft by 2ft. Requests are handled on a first-come first-serve basis and no more than one collection will be approved at any given time period.

If you have questions or would like to request more information, please contact Kristie Fiest, Assistant Director for Residence Life by email or by phone at (715)425-4444 extension 123.

End of a Term

You must attend the end of term meetings to receive information from your resident assistant.
If you plan to return to the residence halls, you will need to prepare your room by closing windows, locking the door, and unplugging appliances that will remain unused during winter break.
If you are leaving the residence halls, your room must be back to its original condition, clean, and ready for another person to move in. You must check out with a resident assistant and follow check-out procedures (including the return of your key) to avoid additional charges.

Summer Break Housing

If you are working full-time for a university department or enrolled as a student during the summer months, there is university housing available for you!

The Department of Residence Life oversees summer housing and will be happy to work with you. Simply contact Residence Life at (715)425-4444 or housing@uwrf.edu to request summer housing. Residence Life summer staff will assign you a residence hall room and take care of all check-in/check-out procedures.

Summer 2010 rates are unknown at this time. However, Summer 2009 rates were $125.00/week for a single room and $95.00/week per person in a double room.

If you are a UWRF student taking summer classes, summer housing is available only during the summer session that you are taking classes. Summer housing is not available (unless you are working full-time for a university department) if you are not taking summer classes.