Residence Hall General Information

Academics in the Residence Halls
Communicable/Infectious Diseases
Communication
Community Restrooms
Conduct Processes and Procedures
Contract Termination
Desk Services
Hall and Floor Meetings
Housekeeping
Identification Card
Keys
Laundry Facilities
Mail
Maintenance
Marketing for University-Affiliated Groups
Parking
Reasonable Accommodations
Residential CAT Communities
Room Checkout Procedures
Roommate Conflict
Room Entry/Access
Room Selection and Transfers
Safety and Security
Self-Destructive Behavior
University Break Housing
Vending Machines

Academics in the Residence Halls

The residence halls are a vibrant part of the K-State academic community. We are committed to helping you succeed in your academic pursuits. Throughout the year, you'll have the opportunity to take advantage of a wide array of events, resources and services in the halls that help improve academic skills and involvement with faculty.

Do not hesitate to seek out your hall staff for assistance with class-related problems, and do not be surprised if staff approaches you about your academic progress. We care about your success and hope to assist you throughout the academic year.

Communicable/Infectious Diseases Communication

Residents who believe they have an infectious or contagious disease should work with medical professionals to address their concern. Housing and Dining Services will work with medical professionals at Lafene Health Center to determine the proper course of action regarding communicable/infectious diseases. For information about Housing and Dining Services' efforts to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, please see our COVID-19 policies page.

Communication

Housing and Dining Services staff may contact you by phone, mail or email about a variety of issues such as maintenance requests, information about holiday breaks, safety issues and other important information. Information may also be dispersed through floor/area meetings, bulletin boards and paper notices delivered to your room and apartment. Your K-State email is the primary source of communication with Kansas State University and Housing and Dining Services. You are responsible for checking your email and physical mailbox frequently. Residents' physical mailboxes are located in the lobbies of their community (mailboxes for Strong Community residents are located in Van Zile Hall). Any notices to a resident shall be deemed received by residents on the date delivered to the resident's K-State email or mailbox.

Community Restrooms

Community restrooms are cleaned daily. Students and guests are expected to use a different restroom while cleaning is in progress.

Conduct Processes and Procedures

Housing and Dining Services staff members are expected to report any significant event that occurs in Housing and Dining Services communities. An incident report is a written account of an event or situation by the person(s) who have the earliest and most direct involvement with the incident. Charges of policy violations originating from an incident report are considered alleged pending completion of the student conduct process. Any member of the Housing and Dining Services community can report behavior that is inconsistent with the residence hall contract, Jardine Apartments agreement, Housing and Dining Services policies and/or university policies. If the alleged misconduct occurs in or on Housing and Dining Services property, complaints should be brought to a Housing and Dining Services staff member (RA, RLA, ACC, CC, AD, etc.), or other offices designated in university policies. Kansas State University's Housing and Dining Services strives to create community spaces that allow for students to grow and succeed in both their academic and personal lives. In order to create a space that fosters this development, Housing and Dining Services staff works to hold community members accountable to the standards and policies of the community. If you are documented by our staff for potentially violating a university or departmental policy, you will be subject to an adjudication process. Through this process, students will work one-on-one with a member of the Housing staff. Learn more about what to expect in a conduct process (PNG).

Contract Termination

The university may terminate the contract by providing notice to the resident (in any manner, including without limitation, electronic or hard copy) after breach by the resident (including without limitation a resident's failure to be or remain eligible for on-campus housing). Upon any such termination, the resident remains responsible for all charges in full under the contract, through the effective date of termination, in addition to any applicable fees and damages assessments otherwise provided for in the contract. If the university terminates the contract based on the resident's breach, the university shall assess liquidated damages for resident's breach, fifty percent (50%) of the daily rate for each day remaining in the term of the contract plus breaks.

Without limiting the foregoing, the university may consider crimes or crimes against persons or property by the resident and/or conduct by the resident that may threaten the safety or security, regardless of where or when committed, in determining whether the resident is or remains eligible for university housing. If the university determines that the resident's crime or conduct indicate a reasonably foreseeable risk of harm to or threatens the safety or security of other residents, employees, or other persons in or around the residential space, the resident will be deemed in breach of the contract, which may result in the university terminating or otherwise modifying the contract, such as moving the resident to a different residential space or restricting the resident's access to housing facilities. Provided however, prior to any determination by the university, the resident will be given an opportunity to respond to the allegations in a contract hearing conducted by university Housing and Dining Services staff. Provided however, if these matters are addressed under the Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) process such that risk management measures impacting the resident's housing are implemented through that process, the procedures under that process for an opportunity to be heard and any opportunity to appeal shall supersede and control.

Without limiting the foregoing, the university may modify the open, closing and break dates for the residence halls. The university also may require a resident to change rooms and/or vacate the residence halls for a period of time. These decisions by the university may be based on the need to provide accommodations for residents during the academic year and/or to protect the health and safety of other residents, employees, and/or the campus community, including but not limited to in response to risks and considerations related to COVID-19 or other infectious diseases. If the university makes any such change, residents will be notified as soon as practicable under the circumstances. Any reduction in total number of available occupancy days for a resident, based on the university's decision under one of the above reasons, will result in a corresponding pro rata return to the resident of rent paid to Housing and Dining Services. The rent is calculated by the amount paid by the resident, less standard move-out costs incurred by the university, which is generally around $215. A resident will not incur any extra charge if the university requires the resident to move rooms during the occupancy period for one of these listed reasons. If a resident elects to no longer occupy a residential space when a residential space is still available to them, the liquidated damages set out in the contract apply, unless otherwise required by applicable law.

Desk Services

All residence halls except Smurthwaite have desk service. Community assistants (CAs) can help with emergency situations by contacting appropriate staff and emergency personnel. They also provide other services, such as distributing mail and checking out available equipment to borrow, and providing keys to available communal rooms. Desk hours are posted and when a desk is closed, services are still available for emergencies with on-call staff.

Hall and Floor Meetings

Residence hall staff conduct hall and floor meetings to communicate important events or information. These meetings are mandatory unless publicized otherwise. You are responsible for all information covered whether or not you attend. If you cannot attend, you may receive the information from a roommate, floormate or by contacting your resident assistant.

Housekeeping

You are responsible for the cleanliness of your room. Vacuum cleaners and other cleaning equipment may be checked out at your residence hall front desk.

Community areas such as bathrooms, lounges and hall corridors are cleaned by custodial staff daily. This does not include the bathrooms in suites — you are responsible for cleaning your suite bathroom. As a courtesy to others, you are expected to clean up after yourself in public areas.

Identification Card

Your K-State ID card bearing your name, Wildcat ID (WID) number and picture is your permanent ID card to use while attending K-State. This card provides you with hall and meal access. Report lost cards immediately to the Union ID Center. Misuse of an ID card includes loaning, falsifying or altering it in any way, or any unauthorized use of the card. Misuse can result in disciplinary action or prosecution, as well as a misuse fee by the department, as dictated by the K-State ID misuse policy. Please carry your ID card on you at all times. You will use your card to gain access to your residence hall. If you do not have your card when entering the hall, you will need to be verified to be allowed in the building. If you have to be verified, it will be recorded on your key card.

Keys

When a room key is reported missing or unaccounted for, the department replaces the lock cylinder to help ensure your security and the safety of others. If you lose your key(s), promptly inform a staff member to initiate a lock change. You will be charged $50 for the cost of replacing the lock in addition to the cost of creating a new key or keys.

If you are locked out of your room, you may rent an extra key at the front desk. Your first three ID card verifications or lockouts are free. After that, each time is $10. If the rental key is not returned within 24 hours, another 24-hour key loan period will be charged to you. We may change your door lock at a cost of $50, plus the key rental charge. These charges are added to your student university billing account.

Laundry Facilities

A laundry facility is available in each residence hall. The cost for laundry is built into the resident’s room and board costs. Laundry rules are explained in the Residence Hall Handbook and residents are expected to follow these rules in consideration of fellow residents.

Please report malfunctioning machines to your residence hall front desk staff.

Mail

All incoming mail addressed to hall residents is delivered Monday through Saturday, except on holidays. U.S. mail distribution is regulated by federal policies. Campus mail is limited to official university communications. Each residence hall has a specific ZIP+4 code. Please refer to the residence hall pages on our website for this specific information. Utilization of the ZIP+4 code assists in the timely distribution of your mail. Please allow an additional two-to-three business days for sending and receiving mail to residence halls, as all mail is initially filtered through the University Central Mail office.

Maintenance

Maintenance problems in your room or elsewhere in the hall should be reported immediately to a staff member. Be specific about the problem and give the staff member permission to enter your room to address the issue. Students may go to the front desk or to a student staff member to submit a work order or to report a maintenance issue. For emergencies, student service technicians (SSTs) are available during non-business hours every day of the year.

Marketing for University-Affiliated Groups

If your group wants to market itself or a university-sponsored event by means of poster advertisements, sidewalk publicity or tabling, you must gain approval by adhering to the following processes.

Poster Advertisements: If a Student Programs and Involvement-registered organization, university department, HDS student group or faculty/staff organization would like to have their poster advertisements distributed to HDS spaces, the poster must be sent to the Pittman Building for approval two weeks in advance of the desired distribution.

Sidewalk Publicity: Sidewalk publicity is a communication written, drawn or applied to campus sidewalks near HDS facilities. Learn more about specific regulations and guidelines such as cleanup requirements, additional applicable university policies, and approved locations, materials and modes of publicity.

Solicitation/Tabling: Housing and Dining Services reserves the right to limit the ability to table inside Housing and Dining facilities as necessary to protect the health and safety of residents, employees and the campus community.

Parking

A resident may purchase a parking permit through KSIS or Parking Services . All motor vehicles, including mopeds, must display a current permit. Any vehicle not displaying a campus parking permit is subject to ticketing. A student living on campus with a residence hall contract may purchase a resident (R) permit from Parking Services, which allows you to park in the R and Z lots.

The Housing and Dining Services office assigns upgrades to the D and GM lots adjacent to the residence halls using a seniority-based points system that considers age, credit hours earned, academic class standing, the number of semesters lived in the residence halls and residence hall leadership. There is no application process for this free upgrade. Any student living in the residence halls who owns an R permit is in consideration for an upgrade. Students who qualify for an upgrade after receiving their R permit will be notified via email to their K-State account. It is unlikely a freshman student will be assigned to a parking lot adjacent to their hall.

Residents in need of accessible parking should contact Parking Services. All residence hall parking lots are restricted 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All parking rules and regulations are enforced 24 hours a day, seven days a week. To avoid receiving a ticket, only park in your assigned lot. Refer additional parking questions to Parking Services at 785-532-PARK (7275) or parking@k-state.edu . Offices are located in the KSU Parking Garage south of the Union.

Reasonable Accommodations

Students who require reasonable accommodations to meet their needs should contact the Student Access Center to request such accommodations and learn more about the resources available to them. Students with a disabled parking placard may park in the designated handicap stalls located at the residence halls. Students must display both state and residence hall parking permits.

K-State provides transportation (a van equipped with a hydraulic lift) for residents with disabilities throughout campus, including residence halls and Jardine Apartments. Contact the Student Access Center at 785-532-6441 for information. Please visit the K-State Parking Services web page for additional bus stop locations and service times.

Residents with meal plans and special dietary needs may contact a Housing and Dining Services dietitian for assistance with choosing appropriate foods from the dining center menus. It may not be possible to accommodate all dietary requests. While every effort is made to make dining center meals meet dietary restrictions, we cannot guarantee that they will. Safety cannot be guaranteed for residents with life-threatening allergies. Ingredients and nutritional content of menu items may vary and cross contamination could occur during production or service. Manufacturers may also change their product formulations or ingredients without our knowledge. Dining Services makes every effort to identify ingredients but cannot guarantee foods won't contain ingredients other than those identified. It is, therefore, the responsibility of the customer to read ingredient labels and decide which foods to avoid. For answers to questions regarding ingredients or other assistance, please consult a Dining Services unit manager at any time. Medically related diet orders or dietary restrictions must be communicated to Dining Services dietitians and may require documentation of restrictions to the Student Access Center as per their reasonable accommodation process.

Residential CAT Communities

Residential CAT Communities provide an added opportunity for first-year students to connect with up to 22 other students who share their academic interests by placing them in the same residential community and the same three intro courses. Students in residential CAT Communities will be directly connected to their faculty members as well as a residential learning assistant (RLA), who lives nearby and offers academic and social support.

Room Checkout Procedures

Rooms must be vacated within 24 hours of the student's last final examination each semester, by the official residence hall closing time or by official withdrawal from classes, whichever comes first. As set forth in your residence hall contract, checkout procedures include making contact and cooperating with the applicable university Housing and Dining Services staff for the resident's selected residential space such that applicable checkout forms may be filled out completely by the applicable university Housing and Dining Services staff, returning all keys, and completing a forwarding address card for mail. The resident shall remove all personal property prior to or at the time the contract expires or is terminated by either party. Additionally, the resident agrees to maintain the residential space and surrounding areas in good condition, and at a condition not less than the condition of the space and areas at the beginning of the occupancy period. The resident shall be charged actual damages, as reasonably determined by the university, for failure to clean and/or return the residential space in a condition not less than the condition of the space at the beginning of the occupancy period, and the university will provide notice to the resident of those charges.

To satisfactorily clean, follow these steps:

Sweep and mop floor
Clean windows and window ledges
Dust shades/blinds
Clean and dust all furniture, including inside drawers
Ensure all original furniture is inside the room

If the resident fails to officially check out of the residential space in accordance with this paragraph, the university will, at its discretion, process and complete an administrative checkout and assess liquidated damages in the amount of $75 for failure to checkout or incomplete checkout, $50 for lock replacement, and other amounts reflected in the University Schedule of Charges for key replacement and other applicable fees, all as applicable.

Roommate Conflict

Living on campus is a community living experience where all members have certain rights and responsibilities. Because the members of a residence hall or apartment community are unique individuals with different perceptions and values, the interpretation of appropriate living conditions can sometimes conflict. When conflict between members of a community occurs, it is important to address the conflict rather than let it escalate. While resolving conflict is not easy, it can lead to understanding and respect among community members and help build a positive living environment.

To help manage any conflict with your roommate(s) or another resident, all residence hall residents will be required to complete a roommate agreement shortly after all occupancy changes. These agreements will include:

Communicating: Talk about habits, preferences and personal values.
Establishing room rules: Common topics include cleaning, borrowing belongings, study times and guests.

Let your building staff help you be proactive! Should conflict with your roommate(s) or another resident develop, our advice is to:

Talk to your roommate(s) when neither of you is angry or upset.
Carefully explain what the issue is and why it frustrates/upsets you.
Be specific and tactful.
Do not threaten or give ultimatums, i.e., ‟if you don't, I'll ..."
Be prepared to make compromises.
If you aren't able to have a civil conversation on your own, seek help from the student staff in your community (RA/RLA).
If relocation is necessary, keep in mind that it is usually the person who requests the change that will move.

Room Entry/Access

A Housing and Dining Services staff member may authorize entrance to a student's room for these reasons, but not limited to:

The resident's permission.
To shut off TVs, radios, persistently ringing alarm clocks, telephones, etc.
During emergencies that present potential danger or threat to life, safety, health or property.
By lawfully issued search warrant.
To provide room maintenance, repair service, health and safety inspections, or pest control, some of which may occur over break periods.

Room Selection and Transfers

The room selection process is primarily determined by the date a contract and payment are received by Housing and Dining Services, the information provided on the contract and space availability. The university reserves the ability to make the final determination about hall and room assignment. The university may change the resident's assigned residential space to accommodate ADA situations, when there is a need to consolidate residents due to vacancies in multiple rooms, and when other situations warrant a change, but only following notification to the resident.

If your initial hall or room preference is not available, you may inquire about the hall or room transfer process at the front desk in your hall or by contacting your Community Coordinator or Assistant Community Coordinator after the official hall opening date. Transfers are made when space is available following an initial holding period. Once permission to move is granted, you must complete the checkout process. Changing rooms without permission from your CC is not permitted. If you change rooms without proper paperwork, an improper checkout charge of $75 is assessed to your student university billing account and you will be required to move back to your assigned room. Requests for interhall transfers will be fielded by our occupancy coordinator, but may be approved upon meeting with the CC or ACC of the community. For more information about the checkout procedure, please reference the section above.

Current residents have an opportunity to select rooms for the following year at the beginning of the spring semester, provided they participate in the official room selection process.

Safety and Security

Students have access to their residence hall at all times the university is in session. An electronic door access system requires use of a resident's K-State ID card. Students may enter their own hall by swiping their K-State ID card through the access card reader installed near most doors. Access to all residential living spaces is restricted 24 hours a day. From 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., the main front doors are the only accessible entrance to each hall. The side entrances may not be used during those hours. There will be a door assistant (DA) at the main entrance door during the hours of 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Thursday through Saturday nights. This person will verify only residents and their registered guests are entering the residence hall. Exterior wing doors have electronic sensors that detect when doors are left ajar. Students are encouraged to lock their door and carry their room key and K-State ID card at all times.

The halls have appropriate fire protection equipment, including a smoke detector in each room and a general fire alarm system in each hall. Smoke detectors are equipped with either a warning seal or electronic monitoring device. Community assistants, hall staff and emergency facilities management staff are available 24 hours a day to respond to the needs of students. A university police officer will walk the perimeter of all halls on a scheduled basis.

Self-Destructive Behavior

Kansas State University endeavors to maintain a safe and educational environment in the residence halls and apartments. The regular operation and day-to-day activities of residential communities and individual residents can be seriously disrupted by self-destructive behavior. Please refer to the Withdrawal from the University for Seriously Disruptive Behavior Policy . Alleged conduct of this nature reported to or observed by Housing and Dining Services staff will be referred to the Office of Student Life and campus police for a welfare check.

University Break Housing

Housing during the university break periods (fall, winter and spring breaks) is not included in the Occupancy Period of this Residence Hall Contract but can be added for an additional cost. Residents may be asked to temporarily relocate during each break period to another hall or a furnished on-campus apartment. Meal services is not available in the dining centers during breaks except for limited meal service during winter break session 2 and spring semester early-arrival period. Specific dates and times for meals during the winter break session 2 will be available a few weeks prior to the break.

Summer housing is available, but a summer contract must be submitted.

Vending Machines

Vending machines containing snack items and beverages are provided in most residence halls. If you find a machine empty, broken or failing to provide a product you have paid for, report it to the front desk staff. Tampering with or maliciously damaging any vending machine is a violation of the law, university regulations and residence hall expectations. It may result in criminal prosecution and/or university disciplinary action.