Student Activities/Housing

Boston University is dedicated to providing an unmatched climate for growth. Most of this development takes place in the classrooms, the libraries, and the laboratories, but Boston University is equally committed to supporting a complete environment for academic, physical, social, and spiritual learning. A few of these centers of activity are described below.

Recreation

Facilities and Programs The Department of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance offers a broad spectrum of programs, classes, and facilities to interested students, faculty, staff, and alumni.

Physical Education credit-courses, non-credit instruction, and Summer Term Recreation provide structured experiences in more than 100 activities in aquatics, climbing wall, court sports, dance, emergency medical response, fitness and weight training, group exercise, individual sports, martial arts, outdoor sports, rowing, sailing, skating, tennis, and yoga. The department also offers Family Recreation Programs and Summer Day Camps for children.

Through collaboration with the College of Fine Arts, the department offers a dance minor that is available to students enrolled in the College of Fine Arts, School of Education, Sargent College, School of Management, College of Communication, College of Arts & Sciences, and School of Hospitality Administration.

Intramural sports, club sports, special events, and open recreation provide opportunities involving different levels of participation and commitment. Students are encouraged to pursue fitness activities in formats that meet their interests, abilities, and schedules.

Boston University has one of the most advanced and comprehensive fitness facilities in the nation. The Fitness & Recreation Center is a 270,000-square-foot facility that provides world-class amenities and service to the entire Boston University community. The facility features an aquatics center with competition and recreation pools, a two-story cardiovascular fitness and weight training center, an indoor 1⁄8-mile elevated jogging track, a 35-foot-high rock climbing wall, a dance theater, seven multipurpose courts of gymnasia, racquetball and squash courts, access to individualized fitness and nutrition counseling, a juice bar and lounge, seven multipurpose rooms for classes in dance, yoga, fencing, cardio fitness, and much, much more. The facility is used for credit and non-credit programming, Intramural and Club Sports, and recreational use. This state-of-the-art facility also serves as a venue for educational and community events, summer camps, conferences, workshops, and alumni functions.

Numerous other facilities offer opportunities for informal recreation. Sailing and kayaking docks are located on the Charles River. Rowing takes place out of the DeWolfe Boathouse on the Charles River. The Track & Tennis Center features an indoor track and indoor tennis courts. Walter Brown Arena hosts skating classes and programs.

For more information about the Department of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, stop by the Fitness & Recreation Center at 915 Commonwealth Avenue, call 617-353-2748, e-mail fitrec@bu.edu, or visit Fitness and Recreation Center.

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Student Union

George Sherman Union

The Boston University George Sherman Union (GSU), located at the center of campus, is headquarters for student programs and services. Located on the Lower Level is The Howard Thurman Center for intercultural programming and its lounge, the Orientation office, and the Terrier Card office. Also located here is BUCentral, the University’s late-night programming venue. Each weekend night, and most nights during the week, events are scheduled here, which are open to the entire University Community.

The GSU offers a variety of other services including a U.S. Post Office, several study lounges for group and quiet study, e-mail terminals, two banks, several dining areas, and the Union Information Center. The University Reservations office is located on the second floor. The office helps to secure space on campus for all non-academic programs.

The Educational Resource Center, located on the fourth floor, coordinates peer tutoring, workshops, language groups, and the writing center.

The University Community Service Center is also located on the fourth floor. Students are able to get information on all of the Service programs at the University and sign up for Alternative Spring Break programs.

For further information regarding these and other George Sherman Union events, visit 775 Commonwealth Avenue, or phone GSU Information at 617-353-5498.

Bands

The BU Bands offer music making opportunities for all students of the University regardless of major or concentration of study. Over 400 students from all eleven undergraduate colleges participate in more than 12 different ensembles under the BU Band umbrella. These groups include: Marching Band, Pep Band, Winter Percussion Ensemble, Concert Band, All Campus Orchestra, Flute Ensemble, Big Band, Jazz Combo, Jazz Workshop, and Vocal Jazz. For more information regarding participation in any of these ensembles visit BU Bands or contact the Band office at 617-358-BAND (2263).

Religion

Boston University recognizes that spiritual development is as vital to its community as academic, cultural, physical, and social development. The University actively sponsors a wide variety of programs and options to help facilitate that development. A few of these programs are outlined below. For a more comprehensive list of religious programs and denominations served on campus, please consult the Lifebook.

Marsh Chapel, in the heart of the Charles River Campus, 735 Commonwealth Avenue, offers programs of Christian worship, Bible study, pastoral counseling, music, and educational and outreach programs. An all-University service of worship is held each Sunday morning at 11 a.m. and is broadcast over WBUR-FM (90.9). Catholic masses are held at Marsh Chapel every Sunday when school is in session at 12:30 p.m., 6 p.m., and 10 p.m.

Marsh Chapel is generally open daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Chapel office is open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays. The Dean of the Chapel, Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill, and other campus ministers in the Marsh program are available daily. The Catholic Chaplain is Father Paul Helfrich. Feel free to contact them or obtain further information by calling Marsh Chapel at 617-353-3560, e-mail chapel@bu.edu, or visit Marsh Chapel.

The Florence & Chafetz Hillel House, BU Hillel’s building located at 213 Bay State Road, is the center for Jewish life at Boston University! Students, faculty, and staff are involved in the cultural, religious, educational, and social activities sponsored by Hillel throughout the year. Hillel’s state-of-the-art building, with beautiful views of the Charles River, is a 34,000-square-foot home that includes wireless internet connections, a coffee bar, an art gallery, TV lounges and study areas, three chapels, a game room, a large dining room, a library, and student offices.

Hillel is one of the largest student organizations on campus and has over 30 different interest groups, including community service groups, a theatre group, an art gallery committee, an a cappella group, the Holocaust Education Committee, Boston University Students for Israel, a graduate student group, an Israeli student group, sports groups, and more. Students plan and organize these interest groups and activities, including social events such as boat cruises, parties, dances, trips, movies, and more. All activities are open to everyone.

Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox Shabbat services are held every Friday night, as well as Shabbat morning services and a daily minyan. All Jewish holidays are celebrated. A wide variety of programs relating to Israel and contemporary moral issues take place weekly. Various mini-courses such as Jewish Thought, Basic Judaism, and Jewish Medical Ethics are taught throughout the year. In addition, counseling by the rabbis and the director of student activities is available.

Boston University maintains an award-winning kosher dining facility at Hillel, with lunch and dinner served Monday through Friday, and lunch on Saturday. For further information about kosher dining, call 617-353-2947. For further information about Hillel, call 617-353-7200 or visit BU Hillel. Make BU Hillel your home away from home!

The Catholic Center, at Newman House, 211 Bay State Road, is the office of Roman Catholic campus ministry for the Boston University community. Sunday liturgies are celebrated in Marsh Chapel at 12:30 p.m., 6 p.m., and 10 p.m. Daily liturgies are celebrated in the Catholic Center Chapel at 12:10 p.m. on Tuesdays–Fridays. (For mass times, when classes are not in session or during the summer, please check with the Catholic Center.) Many and varied spiritual, social, and service activities, as well as sacramental preparation programs are offered throughout the academic year for both undergraduate and graduate students. The Catholic University Chaplain is Fr. Paul Helfrich, BH. For further information call 617-353-3632, e-mail catholic@bu.edu, or visit The Catholic Center.

Other Protestant Campus Ministries  Individuals to contact and their phone numbers include: the Multidenominational Protestant Ministry, Dean, Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill, 617-353-3560; University Chaplain Br. Lawrence A.Whitney, 617-358-3392; the Episcopal Chaplain Rev. John de Beer, 617-277-5523; and the Lutheran Ministry, the Rev. Joanne Engquist, 617-876-3256. A number of Evangelical churches are also affiliated with the campus ministries. For general information or guidance relating to these or other religious groups at Boston University, call 617-353-3560.

Christian Orthodox Campus Ministry  For information, please contact Orthodox Chaplain, Fr. Patrick Tishel at 617-787-7625.

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HOUSING

Living on Campus

Housing provides information about on-campus residence options. The University’s residences range in size from small, converted brownstones, with as few as 12 residents, to high-rise complexes, with 1,700 students. Most residences are coeducational, featuring single- and multiple-occupancy rooms arranged in suite and corridor styles.

Students assigned to a dormitory-style residence must choose one of the six dining plans available. Various dining locations are conveniently situated throughout the campus. Students residing in an apartment-style residence equipped with a kitchenette have the option to contract for a dining plan. For further assistance, please contact BU Housing, 25 Buick Street, Boston, MA 02215; 617-353-3511; or housing@bu.edu.

Residence Life administers the residences through its experienced residence directors and student resident assistants. These specialists collaborate to create supportive and challenging living environments oriented toward personal growth and community awareness. Residents spend leisure and study hours in the various common areas, such as late-night cafés, study areas, lounges, and music rooms.

Student residence hall associations work jointly with residents to create an active program of social, cultural, and intellectual events to supplement the living experience of the residence community.

Specialty communities encourage personal contacts among small groups sharing similar academic or cultural interests. Current specialty communities include Engineering floors, College of Fine Arts floors, College of Communication floors, Management floors, Premedical/Accelerated Medical floors, Wellness House, Writers’ Corridor, Sargent College House, Common Ground House, Community Service House, Core Curriculum floors, Hospitality Administration House, Chinese House, French House, German House, Italian House, Japanese House, and Spanish House. Contact Residence Life, 25 Buick Street, Boston, MA 02215; 617-353-4380.

Housing Policy and Regulations

All freshmen are required to live on campus, as are all students who received University-funded scholarships equal to or greater than tuition.

Freshmen may request an exception to the freshman-year residency requirement if they reside locally with a parent (whose principal place of domicile is within a 20-mile radius of Boston University’s Charles River Campus and has been for at least 12 consecutive months immediately preceding registration as an entering freshman), child, or spouse; or if they are 21 years of age or older by October 1 of their entering year. To request an exception, send a letter, accompanied by a written statement of parental consent, to:

Boston University Housing
25 Buick Street
Boston, MA 02215

The University Housing Committee must give written approval for a freshman or full-tuition merit scholar to be released from the requirement to live on campus and occupy a residence other than one in University housing.

Students (including full-tuition merit scholarship recipients) who are under 16 years of age as of October 1 of their entering year are not eligible to live on campus, and thus not required to meet freshman-year residency requirements.

Note: “Principal place of domicile” means a person’s true, fixed, and permanent home and place of habitation, to the exclusion of all others. It is the place where the person intends to remain permanently. “Parent” means a person’s father or mother. In the case of legally separated or divorced parents, “parent” means either a parent with legal custody or a parent providing more than one-half of a student’s total financial support.

The University reserves the right for its designees to enter and to inspect a student’s room, to reassign students in the University’s residential system, to revoke and terminate a student’s Residence License Agreement for any reason set forth in that agreement, and to implement any other measures necessary and advisable for health, safety, or in the interest of the residence program. Any resident whose conduct does not meet the standards established by the University may be denied on-campus residence accommodations.

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Published by Trustees of Boston University
One Silber Way
Boston, MA 02215

16 October 2009
Boston University
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