Living Off Campus: Community Expectations and Being a Good Neighbor

The following message was sent to all off-campus students on Thursday, September 3, by Dean Campbell-Foster.

Dear BU Off-Campus Students:

The start of the fall semester is an exciting time. As you unpack, settle in, and reconnect with friends, I want to remind you about your responsibility to the community in which you live and ask that you make establishing positive relationships with your neighbors a priority. I also want to offer helpful tips to protect your safety, your belongings, and your new home.

Living off campus is an important exercise in independence. It offers freedom, certainly, but it also places you within a community whose rhythms, expectations, and responsibilities may be new or unfamiliar to you. Even if you are returning to the same off-campus address, you may find that expected patterns have shifted as former students graduated and new neighbors moved in.

Whether you live in Allston-Brighton, Brookline, or elsewhere in Boston, you are living alongside families, children, older adults, working professionals, and other students. Your home is also part of their neighborhood. As the academic year begins, I want to be clear about what it means to be a good neighbor and the importance of consideration and respect as you enjoy life off campus.

Your Address is Part of a Community

Living independently requires a degree of judgement that living in the University residences can sometimes obscure. The impact of the choices you make in the year ahead may extend well beyond your front door and challenge you to consider how you interact with your neighbors.

Please keep these basic expectations in mind:

• Keep music, voices, and gatherings at a reasonable volume, particularly late at night.
• Be thoughtful about the size of gatherings and the number of guests you invite into your home.
• Do not allow parties to migrate into hallways, porches, sidewalks, streets, roofs, or neighboring properties.
• Clean up trash, bottles, and other debris promptly.
• If a neighbor raises a concern, respond respectfully and take it seriously.

Remember: your right to enjoy your new home should not come at the expense of your neighbors’ right to a quiet, safe, and clean environment.

When a Complaint Becomes a Court Matter

One of the greatest challenges of living off campus is how to socialize without disturbing your neighbors. By choosing to live off campus, you are accepting responsibility to carefully monitor your new home and address issues before they escalate beyond your control.

With greater independence comes the need to anticipate potential problems and take accountability when things do not go as planned. If, for example, more guests arrive at a gathering than were invited and activities spill out into your yard, you cannot walk away or assume that a police response will end with a request to lower music and disperse the gathering. Whether you planned the event or not, you need to step up and address the situation. If not, Boston police or other local law enforcement can cite you and your housemates for hosting a loud, disruptive, or unlawful gathering.

That can mean:

• A summons to appear in court.
• Fines or other legal consequences.
• Referral of the incident to Boston University for separate review under the Code of Student Responsibilities, which applies to student conduct off campus. Sanctions from the University may include suspension or expulsion.

Sound judgement, reasonable restraint, and basic consideration for the people living around you can prevent most problems before they begin and eliminate the need for police intervention.

A Little Vigilance Goes a Long Way

Independence also means taking greater responsibility for the security of your home.

Please make these ordinary precautions routine:

• Always lock doors and windows and do not leave them open and accessible while you are out. Pay particular attention to windows accessible from fire escapes, porches, or lower roofs.
• Do not prop open exterior doors.
• Do not admit people into your building whom you do not know.
• Report broken locks and windows, smoke detectors, or other safety concerns to your landlord or property manager promptly.
• Get to know your neighbors and the people who ordinarily belong in and around your building.

Residential thefts often begin with an unlocked door, an open window, or another unsecured point of entry. Small habits‒and simple precautions‒can help to secure your new home.

Independence Does Not Mean Going It Alone.

Off-campus living can also bring unfamiliar challenges: questions about a lease or tenants’ rights, difficulty with a landlord, maintenance issues, concerns about a neighbor, uncertainty about local expectations, or simply not knowing where to turn.

BU’s Off Campus Services (OCS) provides information, advice, and referrals related to renting and living off campus. Contact OCS if you need support or coaching in addressing any issues that may arise.

Enjoy the City. Respect the Neighborhood.

Boston University is part of Boston, and students who live off campus become part of its neighborhoods in a particularly tangible way.

Most of you will navigate that responsibility without difficulty because you already understand the underlying principle: communities function well when people exercise good judgement, extend consideration to one another, and recognize that their choices affect people beyond themselves.

Enjoy your home. Have friends over. Explore your neighborhood. Take advantage of everything the city has to offer. And do so in a way that makes the people living around you glad to have you as a neighbor.

Sincerely,

Dr. Jason Campbell-Foster
Dean of Students