Parent or Family Member

Residence Life welcomes our families! We believe success for our students comes easiest when our team and families work collaboratively to help students develop the skills needed to navigate living with others and develop the skills for independent living. You will find this page full of great resources to help you stay engaged, and guide your student.  

Resources for Families

Thank you for visiting our site to better help you support your student while they are attending the College of Charleston. Click on the below to get information on Residence Life operations, campus policies, works orders, and more.

Below is a list of commonly asked questions about how best to help your student resident:


Please describe the staffing structure in Residence Life.

The Staffing Structure consists of the following:

  • Executive Director: The Executive Director of Residence Life oversees all functions of the department. The Director is responsible for the direction, coordination, and management of all aspects of programming, assessment, and financial planning pertaining to the residential community. The Director of Residence Life is a member of the Student Affairs Leadership Team and reports directly to the Executive Vice President for Student Affairs.
  • Associate Director: The Associate Director (ADRL) assists the director in the direction, coordination, and management of the department. The ADRL directly supervises the Assistant Directors, and reports to the Director of Residence Life.
  • Assistant Director(s): Assistant Directors (AD) help manage the day-to-day operations of the department and the residence halls. The ADs directly supervise the Residence Hall Directors as well as the Graduate Residence Hall Directors. ADs are also live-in staff members. ADs are responsible for the planning and implementation of various departmental initiatives.
  • Administrative Assistant: The administrative assistant reports to the director. The administrative assistant coordinates and performs a wide range of administrative activities for the department. The administrative assistant also plays a large role in maintaining customer service efforts for the department.
  • Residence Hall Director(s): Residence Hall Directors (RHDs) are full-time, live-in staff members responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of their specific community. The RHDs directly supervise Resident Assistants and Desk Assistants. RHDs also advise the Hall Government associated with their area(s). RHDs serve as hearing officers for Residence Life policy violations and some Student Code of Conduct violations that occur in residential areas. RHDs also participate in an on-call rotation that serves the entire residential campus throughout the year.
  • Graduate Residence Hall Director(s): Graduate Residence Hall Directors (GRHDs) are part-time, live-in staff members responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of their specific community. The GRHDs directly supervise Resident Assistants and Desk Assistants. GRHDs advise the Hall Governments associated with their area(s). GRHDs may serve as hearing officers for low-level Residence Life policy violations. Graduate Hall Directors perform many of the same tasks and services as RHDs but as they are active students, their academic experience takes priority. GRHDs are a part of the same on-call rotation as the RHDs.

 
What is your advice on how students should handle roommate/suitemate conflicts?

We strongly encourage the roommates to first discuss problems among themselves. If the students feel that they are having a hard time working it out, they should contact the Resident Assistant (RA), Residence Hall Director (RHD), or the Residence Life Office for assistance.


My student seems homesick. What can be done to help?

Try not to encourage the behavior by calling them every day. Encourage the student to get more involved by joining campus organizations and attending programs. The student may wish to contact his/her RA for assistance.

What if a maintenance problem occurs?

For non-emergency services, the student should submit a work order form online through the New work order system, which can be found on the student's MyPortal account. If they have difficulty completing a work order, please direct the student to contact their RA for assistance. The maintenance team assigned to the building will then handle the request on a priority basis as they come in. For emergency needs, the resident should contact the front desk of their building immediately!