Parent & Family Newsletter

December 2019

Thank You for Attending 
TCNJ 2019 Parent & Family Day

Thank you to everyone who attended the 2019 TCNJ Parent & Family Day! For those who attended, please share any feedback on the day's events by filling out our feedback survey if you have not done so already. 

Title IX
By Chelsea Jacoby, Title IX Coordinator

School Spotlight
School of Business
By Bozena Leven, Interim Dean, School of Business

• Student Attends Forbes Under 30 Summit
  Accounting senior Sherida Hinckson attended the annual Forbes Under 30 Summit this semester in Detroit, Michigan as a Forbes Under 30 Scholar. Only 1,000 students across the country are selected to participate in the event. 
• The Sleeping Giants Story: The Power of Consumer Activism with Nandini Jammi
  Nandini Jammi is co-founder at Sleeping Giants, the campaign to make hate and bigotry unprofitable.
• TCNJ Ranked Top Accounting Program in State
  The TCNJ Accounting Program has been ranked number 3 out of 17 schools in New Jersey, placing it in the top 15% of all accounting departments in the state.
• 9th Annual Women's Leadership Summit
  TCNJ’s School of Business hosted the annual Women’s Leadership Summit for students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members with the goal of providing women leaders with the opportunity to learn about and discuss topics relevant to their personal and professional lives. 
• Finance Student Crowned Homecoming King
  Senior Finance student Lloyd Padmore was named TCNJ’s 2019 Homecoming King! “The Best Times are always when friends and family are around,” said Padmore. “I had a great time connecting with Alumni and friends alike this weekend and truly treasured this memorable moment.”
• Cover Letter Workshop
  Adjunct professor of management, Martine Bertin-Peterson, offers resume review workshops for all School of Business Students. Now, on the last Tuesday of the month, cover letter review sessions will be offered.
• TCNJ Student Group Receives Prestigious Award from World’s Largest HR Association
  The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) has awarded a 2018-2019 Superior Merit Award designation to The College of New Jersey SHRM student chapter for providing superior growth and development opportunities to its student chapter members.
• L’Oreal Alumna Speaks on Corporate Social Responsibility
  Alumna Kristin Couch Fitzsimons ’10 visited the School of Business on Wednesday, October 23, to discuss her career path at L’Oreal. As the Senior Manager for Sustainable Sourcing at L’Oreal Americas Operations, Fitzsimons delivers on her passion for sustainability. She graduated from TCNJ as a double major in Business and Sociology.
• September Business Leaders Talk: Honest Career Advice from Fellow Alumni
  Dr. Herbert Mayo, Professor of Finance, invited alumni Darrel Kasper and George Wunder to share their expertise and candid advice with TCNJ students on Wednesday, September 18, 2019.

TCNJ Student Health Services
Don't Delay Influenza Vaccination
 

Did you know that last year, TCNJ Student Health Services was the winner of the 2nd annual New Jersey College & University Influenza Challenge, an initiative of the New Jersey Department of Health? TCNJ demonstrated the highest percentage of undergraduate students who reported receiving the influenza (flu) vaccine for 2018-2019. Student Health Services strives to have even more TCNJ students report receiving the flu vaccine this year. Parents and family members can play important roles in reminding students to get vaccinated against the flu. Due to the close living and learning environments of college campuses, students are at increased risk for contracting and spreading the flu. The flu is not just a bad cold; it can be a serious illness. Students often miss classes, assignments, special events, trips, and sports for a week or more. Some students develop complications from the flu and need hospitalization. Some facts about the flu vaccine:

• The flu vaccine is not 100% effective – no vaccine is. However, annual flu vaccination reduces the chance of getting the flu. Flu vaccination can also reduce the severity of illness in a person who gets the flu.     
• Having a high vaccination rate in a community reduces the number of circulating flu viruses.
• Annual flu vaccination is needed because effectiveness wanes and flu viruses change year-to-year.
• The vaccine takes 2 weeks to begin working. 
• Flu vaccine does NOT cause the flu. 
• Some people may experience a sore arm or muscle aches a few hours after their flu shot, for up to 1-2 days – but this is normal. Tylenol® or Advil® provides good relief. 
• Flu vaccination is readily available in the community at most doctor’s offices, pharmacies, clinics, and health departments. Flu vaccination is also available in Student Health Services for $20 (free to students enrolled in the TCNJ student health insurance plan).

Once your student receives the flu vaccination, please ask them to complete a brief survey to allow their vaccination to count in this year’s flu challenge: http://healthsurveys.nj.gov/NoviSurvey/n/NJChallenge.aspx

Dear World Visits TCNJ
Tara Mild, College Enhancement Intern
Office of Leadership

Dear World is an internationally recognized storytelling and portrait project meant to share meaningful stories of individuals. Dear World came to the College on September 4th, and it was an incredible experience for students, faculty, and staff. The project encourages participants to be vulnerable, allowing them to voice their stories by writing phrases and images on their body, photographing them and portraying their experiences at a photo reveal in February 2020.

The goal of Dear World is to show the vast experiences and diversity of not just the TCNJ community, but every campus and place it visits as well. The shoot was an eye-opening experience for all participants, and was an engaging and remarkable way to learn about the people around them. Participants chose to take on powerful poses and expressions with equally powerful words, while others chose common stereotypes to bring light to an issue they feel passionate about. Dear World strives to highlight issues and conversations that people are hungry to have, connecting people to each other and emphasizing the idea that no one is alone in their journey.

What's New at TCNJ?
 

• Nursing students at TCNJ achieve a 100% pass rate on the National Council Licensure Examination.
• Civil engineering students and their professor apply big data to understand New Jersey’s traffic lifestyle.
• ROTC program provides transformative experience for a TCNJ senior. 
• TCNJ is ranked as having one of the top accounting programs in the state.
• TCNJ theater course celebrates fifth season of inclusiveness and activism.  

Winter Closing Information
By the Department of Residential Education & Housing

Residence halls will close for winter break on Tuesday, December 17, 2019 at 8:00pm, and reopen Sunday, January 26, 2020 at noon. Residents are expected to vacate the halls 24 hours after their last exam or by the closing date, whichever comes first.

Please remind your student to take all valuable possessions home for the break, including electronics, jewelry, passports, medication, etc. and also to pack appropriately, as staff will not be available to let people back into their rooms before the halls reopen.
 
If your student is moving into a new room in the Spring, please vacate the Fall room completely by the hall closing date. Any possessions left behind after closing will be discarded as the room is prepared for a new Spring resident.
 
Students will be emailed a notice with a closing check list, tips, dining hall times, and other important information for finals week in early December, and this information will also be posted on our website.

Housing Application Information
By the Department of Residential Education & Housing
 

TCNJ on-campus* housing applications for the 2020-2021 academic year started on Monday, December 2, 2019! Applying is as easy as 1-2-3:

1. Students may log in to My Housing. 
2. Click on the academic year 20-21 application.
3. Fill out the required information and sign the housing contract.

Please note that students will be required to sign their contract upfront for their application to be considered complete. The contract is a binding agreement for the entire 2020-2021 academic year. If your student signs the contract but wishes to cancel the application, he/she/they may do so by Sunday, February 9, 2020 without penalty. All contract termination requests received after this date will be processed in accordance to the contract release policy and may be subject to the cancellation and refund schedule.

For more information on the lottery/room selection process and on campus living, please refer to the housing webpage. While there, you may also explore the special interest housing being offered next year: Substance Free Housing, I House and Gender Inclusive Housing.
 
Last year, everyone who applied on time received a time slot. It is anticipated that if your student applies by the application deadline (Sunday, February 9, 2020) that he/she/they will also receive a time slot!

*On-campus housing for returning students includes: Norsworthy, New Residence, Eickhoff, Decker, Cromwell, Townhouse East, Townhouse West, Townhouse South, Phelps and Hausdoerffer.
 
Housing Application Timeline:

• Housing applications for the 2020-2021 academic year will be open: 12/2/2019-2/9/2020
• Deadline to cancel the 2020-2021 housing contract without penalty: 2/9/2020
• Sophomore room selection: 3/2/2020
• Junior/Senior room selection: 3/3/2019
• Deadline to cancel the 2020-2021 housing contract for any reason: 5/19/2020 (Please note that cancellation requests  received between 2/10/2020 and 5/19/2020 will be assessed a cancellation fee.

The holidays can be a stressful time for families, especially when students return home from college. Dr. Mark J. Forest, AVP for Health and Wellness and Director of TCNJ’s Mental Health Services, offers guidance on keeping the peace during the holiday season and recognizing signs of mental unrest within your student. Check it out here.

Health and Wellness Newsletter
By TCNJ's Health and Wellness Portfolio
 

TCNJ Athletics Inducts 2019 Hall of Fame Class
By TCNJ Athletics

 

TCNJ Class Rings
 

If so, we have articles on our website focused on transitioning to college for parents and families. You can find articles and resources on our website here.

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