The Johnson & Wales University Housing Contract/Online Room Terms Agreement covers the entire 2011-12 academic year; by signing it, you agree to all of its terms. Room and board charges are payable by term; as long as you maintain active student status while attending the university, you will be responsible for payment for the entire academic year, regardless of any decision on your part to occupy your assigned room or to utilize university dining facilities for whatever reason, voluntary or involuntary. A copy of this Housing Contract/Room Terms Agreement can be obtained from the department of residential life. I. Period of Agreement The Housing Contract allows you to live in the residence halls for the entire academic year, including the Fall term (beginning on assigned move-in date), the Winter* term, and the Spring term (ending on assigned move-out date). *All residence halls will be closed during Winter break. You will be required to leave your room and take any valuables home during the break. (The university is not responsible for items that may be lost or stolen if left behind.) You must make alternate housing arrangements during the break. II. Residency Requirement/Eligibility First-year students who are unmarried, under the age of 21, living outside commuting distance and have never previously attended college must live on campus. In order to remain on campus, you must be a full-time, undergraduate day school student enrolled for a minimum of 12.0 credit hours. Undergraduate students who are enrolled for less than the minimum credit hours may only live on campus with our approval. Students over the age of 23 must submit a request, in writing, to our office for approval to live on campus. III. Room Assignment Rooms are to be occupied only by the person(s) properly assigned to them. Room assignments are not transferable; subletting is strictly prohibited. Room changes are permitted only upon prior written authorization from our office. If you make an unauthorized room change, you will be required to return to your original assigned room; in addition to an administrative charge of $150, you may face additional sanctions. We reserve the right to move residents for a number of reasons, including (but not limited to) consolidation, disciplinary action, facility failure, safety, or for other reasons in response to unforeseen circumstances. In accordance with state and federal laws, no discrimination in contracting or assignments is made on the basis of race, gender, religion, age, veteran status, color, disability, national origin or ancestry. In addition, we welcome all persons regardless of sexual orientation. If you have been assigned to a residence hall only to become inactive or depart on a term abroad, you will forfeit your assignment. Upon your return, there is no guarantee that you will be assigned to the same hall or room. If you fail to occupy an assigned room by the first day of classes for the term, you will forfeit your assignment, unless a written application providing sufficient cause has been submitted and approved beforehand. You will be held to the contract and room and board charges for the entire academic year for as long as you are a registered, active student at the university. Our office reserves the right to re-assign student rooms or change a room’s capacity at any time prior to or during the academic year. We also reserve the right to remove students from the residence halls, especially those who have exhibited disregard for the residential community; for the terms and conditions of residence hall occupancy; or for other housing rules and regulations. We may terminate this agreement and take possession of the room at any time for violations of the Student Code of Conduct as prescribed by the Charlotte Student Handbook. If a violation results in suspension or dismissal from housing, room and board charges must be paid for the remainder of the term in question. If a vacancy becomes available in any room, the remaining student(s) in that room agree(s) to accept a new occupant at any time to fill the existing vacancy. Behavior that discriminates against a newly assigned occupant will be considered sufficient grounds for reassigning the existing occupant(s) or removing said occupant(s) from the residence halls. Such determination will be made at the discretion of the director of residential life. Removal from the residence halls will not exempt the student(s) from previously incurred rental and damage charges. The university may terminate this agreement and take possession of a room at any time for violation of the provisions herein or upon recommendation. IV. Room Costs The room cost for on-campus housing is issued at four rates: premium, standard, value and apartment; the charge is assessed to the resident’s account each term. Payments should be made in accordance with university deadlines. Rates are subject to change annually. For current fees, consult Student Financial Services. V. Residential Facilities and Rules Our facilities are reserved for the exclusive use of resident students, invited guests and authorized university personnel. You are responsible for upholding the rules and regulations of the university and residential life; you will also be held responsible for the behavior of your guests. We will not tolerate the use of alcohol and/or illegal drugs in any residence halls. Any resident found responsible for possession will face strong sanctions, which may result in suspension from the university. (In the case of suspension, the university’s Withdrawal Credit Policy applies. See the Student Handbook for the complete refund policy.) Conducting a business or sales or fundraising in the residence halls is prohibited, unless the event is sanctioned by our office or Student Activities. Failure to adhere to the written instructions published by the department of residential life or to comply with the reasonable directives of university officials (including resident assistants and work-study students) may be deemed a violation of housing rules and regulations. In addition, our office may make changes in its rules, as deemed necessary, in the interest of health, safety, discipline or educational purposes; students shall abide by such changes in policies. VI. Maintenance and Housekeeping You are obligated to report any need for repairs to furnishings and equipment. Requests for repairs must be made through the front desk of the residence hall between the hours of 8am and midnight. Maintenance staff may enter any residence hall room at any time without prior notification to address a maintenance concern. Emergency maintenance is available for campus emergencies during the evening hours. You are expected to maintain your own rooms and common space in an orderly, safe and sanitary fashion. We conduct bi-weekly inspections to ensure students are abiding by a required standard of living. This includes but is not limited to: 1. A clean environment, free from unsanitary items such as overflowing trash, refuse on the floors or in other areas, exposed food items, accumulated laundry or other items that add to the appearance of an unclean living environment. This may include unclean bathrooms and unswept/unmopped floors. 2. A safe environment, free from obstructions that may interfere with the path of egress in case of emergency or items that may cause a fire threat or threat to physical safety. 3. A well maintained environment, free from reckless or intentional damage to university property. If you do not heed warnings from staff members about maintaining a required standard of living, you may face sanctions, including fines, room-reassignment and other penalties. VII. Damage and Community Charges Charges for loss or damage to communications wiring, physical structure (walls, windows, doors, ceilings, floors, etc.), furnishings or equipment in a student room or suite will be assessed of all the student(s) residing in that room or suite. Charges for loss or damages to common area furniture, physical structure and equipment not able to be assessed to a particular individual will be charged against the residential unit (wing, floor, suite or apartment). VIII. Key Access (Room and Mail) Keys are the property of the university and must be returned when you move out of your room. Failure to return keys at the time of move-out or relocation will result in charges to your account to cover the replacement of keys (changing of locks room/suite/apartment and mailbox). Keys returned after charges have been applied will not result in the removal of replacement charges. If you lose your key, you must report the loss as soon as possible to the front desk. Replacement keys are charged to the student’s account. Room keys are $100 and mail keys are $50. Once a lock has been changed, the key charge cannot be reversed, even if the lost key is found. IX. Right of Entry We reserve the right to enter student rooms/suites/apartments for the following reasons: emergency, repair, maintenance, health and safety inspections, suspicion of inappropriate behavior/policy violation, and administrative necessity. A student refusing to grant entry to any university official (including resident assistants) acting in the performance of their duties may be deemed in violation of housing rules and regulations. X. Liability The university will assume no responsibility for the loss, damage or theft of personal property belonging to, or in the custody of, the student for any cause whatsoever, whether such losses occur in student rooms, public areas or elsewhere in the residence hall. You are strongly encouraged to carry personal property insurance. XI. Utilities Room charges include all utilities except long-distance telephone service. Basic cable TV and Internet services are provided in all halls. Utility services may be reduced or cut off during prolonged vacation periods in the interest of energy conservation or maintenance. Failure of utility services does not render the university liable for inconvenience to students or damage to property, nor does it reduce room charges or relieve students of obligations under the Housing Contract. In addition, some halls have seasonal air conditioning that is operated by a building-wide system during specific time periods. Failure of the system will not render the university liable for inconvenience to students or damage to property, nor does it reduce room charges or relieve students of obligations under the Housing Contract. XII. Termination of the Housing Contract by the University Upon reasonable notice and for good cause, the university reserves the right to terminate your Housing Contract. In this event, you will be required to vacate the residence halls within 24 hours unless special written permission has been obtained from the director of residential life or a designee. Room charges will still be assessed. At our discretion, we may deny on-campus housing to students who have been charged with or convicted of a felony, if it appears they have a personal history that presents an unacceptable risk to the residence hall community. In addition, the our office will, at our discretion, deny on-campus housing to students who have demonstrated a personal history that presents an unacceptable risk to the residence hall community, including previous behavioral violations and/or violations of Residential Life rules and regulations. If the decision is made to deny on-campus housing prior to move-in, all charges will be credited to your account. If the decision is made to terminate on-campus housing rights once you are living on campus, you may be required to pay that term’s room and board charges in full or in portions, depending on the situation and the university’s refund policy, as stated in the Student Handbook. In rare cases, we may grant a contract release if you are unable to remain on campus. Typical reasons may include severe financial constraints or significant medical need, either of which may impede your ability to reside on campus and to attend the university. A formal contract release request must be submitted in writing (email or letter form) to us; be sure to include relevant supporting financial or medical documentation. In the exceptional case a release is granted, you will be responsible for paying room and board charges for the remainder of the term during which the release was approved, as well as a termination fee of $250/term that you did not fulfill per the original terms of the housing contract.
Contract ReleaseStudents should be advised that contract releases or exceptions are granted only in situations involving extreme or unusual circumstances, the nature of which would prohibit living in a residence hall or impose a severe hardship. A desire to experience off-campus living is not considered an acceptable reason to grant a release.
To begin the release process, you must fill out the Contract Release form (33K PDF). Please review the Student Handbook for detailed information on being released from your housing contract.