Columbia University Student Services June Mailing

Cable Services

Columbia Housing and Columbia University Information Technology (CUIT) provide basic cable TV service, CUtv, featuring 70 channels, in the floor lounges of these residence halls:

Broadway Residence, Hogan 7th, River, Carman, Wien 2nd, Schapiro, Furnald, John Jay, East Campus 2nd, Woodbridge Basement, McBain, Ruggles Basement.

CUIT provides Premium CUtv service (including HBO and HBO plus) in the suite lounges of Hartley and Wallach Halls.

Premium CUtv service is also available by subscription, for a monthly charge of $27.95, in the living rooms of Hogan Hall and East Campus. 

Premium CUtv service is also available by subscription, for a monthly charge of $27.95, in the student rooms of these residence halls:

Broadway Residence, McBain, Watt, Carman, River, Woodbridge, Furnald, Schapiro, 600 W. 113th Street, John Jay, Ruggles, 114th Street Brownstones (604 & 606 W. 114th Street), Lenfest, Wien.

Note: Premium CUtv service is not available in the student rooms of Hartley, Wallach, East Campus, or Hogan Halls. 

For more information, please visit CUIT's website.
For technical support, please contact the CUIT Helpdesk by emailing askCUIT@columbia.edu or calling 212-854-1919.

Computing at Columbia

Columbia University Information Technology (CUIT) provides Columbia University students, faculty and staff with central computing and communications services including computer accounts, email, land-line telephone service, online course management and student information applications.  CUIT manages Columbia’s high-speed Ethernet network, available in all student residence hall rooms, as well as the wireless network.

CUIT also manages an array of computer labs, terminal clusters, ColumbiaNet kiosk stations, and electronic classrooms, and provides a variety of technical support services including the CUIT Helpdesk.

For technical support, contact CUIT at 212-854-1919 or visit the CUIT website.

Environmental Initiatives

Columbia University is making great efforts to go green. There are lots of opportunities for you to do your part, even before you get to campus. To learn more, go to Environmental Stewardship and read the Guide to Green Living.

CFL BULBS
When purchasing desk lamps for your room, we encourage you to buy compact fluorescent bulbs, which last 15 times longer than traditional bulbs and burn at the same brightness using less energy.

ECOREPS
EcoReps are a group of students working in partnership with Columbia Housing and the Office of Environmental Stewardship to provide Peer to Peer Resources for Columbia students. This means: publicizing available environmental services to students, serving as a bridge of communication between students and the administration and facilitating campus projects for a reduced university ecological footprint. CU EcoReps is one chapter of a national student movement. Applications for members open in early Fall and Spring each semester, and first-year students are encouraged to apply.

GIVE + GO GREEN
EcoReps, in conjunction with Columbia Housing, the Salvation Army, City Harvest, Rock and Wrap It Up!, and Per Scholas have organized a campaign to help make donating your stuff to local charities easy during Move-Out before winter break and the summer. Simply bring your unwanted items to a drop-off location instead of throwing them in the trash. We’ll take care of the rest.

RECYCLEBANK
RecycleBank is a rewards program to help encourage recycling across campus. In the first month of the pilot program, the Columbia University community already recycled over 7,500 pounds– that’s 37.5 trees and over 2,500 gallons of oil. Make sure you sign-up during Check- In, so you can receive your account information and RecycleBank bag, and you can recycle for rewards like Pinkberry and iTunes giftcards.

Housekeeping and Maintenance Requests

Columbia University Facilities handles housekeeping and maintenance requests for all residence halls and brownstones. To place a non-emergency maintenance request, go to Housing, select “Maintenance Request” and follow the instructions. Examples of maintenance requests include lock changes or repairs, missing furniture, malfunctioning plumbing, repair or replacement of safety equipment, and lack of heat or air-conditioning, if applicable.

Laundry

Laundry facilities are located in each residence hall and are accessible 24 hours a day. Using Laundry View Online, you can check for machine availability and cycle timing through the Housing website (go to http://www.columbia.edu/cu/housing click Laundry View). The washers and dryers are coin-operated, but you may find it more convenient to use your Flex Account.

Please see Dining for more details on getting a Flex Account.

Phone Services

Columbia uses the Rolm telephone system in all academic and residential buildings. Each residence hall room is equipped with a basic model RolmPhone that is connected to a campus-wide network and features a wide range of complimentary services, including on-campus dialing, voicemail, call forwarding, call waiting, and one-way speakerphone. Since your phone service already has voicemail, you do not need to provide your own answering machine. In fact, because the Rolm system is digital, an answering machine will not work when connected to it.

Visit CUIT's RolmPhone page for more information.

Columbia Mail

Undergraduate Mail is coordinated by Columbia Mail. The U.S. Postal Service and couriers like Fed Ex deliver mail directly to the Student Mail Center in Lerner Hall. Student mailboxes are located on the 3rd and 4th floor ramps of Lerner Hall. The Student Package Center, located on the 4th floor across from Ferris Booth Commons, coordinates package delivery and pick up.

ADDRESS FORMAT
You have been assigned your own mailbox number, which you’ll use your entire time at Columbia. You will receive an email from Columbia Housing in early August with your mailbox assignment. When letters and packages are sent to your campus address, it is important that the following format always be used:

Student’s Full Name
#### Lerner Hall
2920 Broadway
New York, NY 10027

#### equals your 4-digit mailbox number.

The word “box” should never be used in the address. Mail should never be sent to a student’s residence hall address.

MAGAZINES AND NEWSPAPERS
Some magazines are too big to fit into the Lerner boxes. If so, Columbia Mail will place a notification slip in your mailbox. Bring the slip to a mail representative at the 4th floor mail window on the ramp (not the Package Center) to retrieve your magazine. Newspapers are also kept aside. No notification will be issued for daily newspapers/periodicals.

PACKAGES
When a package is delivered to the Student Mail Center, a notification email is sent to the student for pick up. When a student receives a package that is clearly marked “perishable,” a phone call will be made to the student. All parcels are kept for 14 days. If not picked up within 7 days, a second email is sent letting the student know his or her package is scheduled for return. The student then has 7 days before that package is returned. Perishable and oversized bulk packages will be held for no more than 7 days, as there is no refrigeration available.

RECEIVING MAIL
Columbia Mail usually receives two deliveries of mail a day. Magazines usually arrive with the afternoon delivery. Mail received before 12:00 p.m. is boxed before the end of the business day, while mail received after 12:00 p.m. may carry over to the next day.

SENDING MAIL
Outgoing mail can be placed in a USPS mailbox or in one of the outgoing mail slots on the 3rd and 4th floors of Lerner Hall. A USPS-owned and -operated vending machine sells stamps in the lobby of Lerner Hall. The Student Package Center, located on the 4th floor of Lerner Hall, provides FedEx and UPS services at a discounted rate to the Columbia community. The Package Center also sells packing supplies and miscellaneous items.

COLUMBIA MAIL WEBSITE
Visit Columbia Mail online or email any questions to lernerhallmailservices@columbia.edu.

Property Insurance

Please be advised that the University assumes no responsibility for the loss of or damage to your property while you live in the residence halls. If your belongings are not already insured through a homeowner’s policy, we encourage you to insure them through another vendor.

The following companies off er low-cost personal property insurance policies specifically for college students. We cannot endorse these companies, but you may find the information useful. An insurance agent can best advise you on the most cost-eff ective manner to protect your property.

CSI Insurance Agency, Inc.

National Student Services, Inc.

Refrigerators, Carpets and Bedlifters

These are brought to you by The Blue Key Society, a Columbia student organization in affiliation with Cecil Distributors, Inc.

A portion of all proceeds goes to the Blue Key Society, enabling the society to promote the values of community service and awareness. For more information, please go to www.columbia.edu/cu/bluekey or email them at
bluekey@columbia.edu.

Columbia Transportation

Columbia University provides a network of five shuttle services among its campuses and the surrounding community. Shuttles are available to all Columbia University affiliates with a valid University ID, free of charge.

To view routes, maps and detailed schedules, visit Columbia Transportation online.

EVENING SHUTTLE AND ESCORT SERVICE
The Evening shuttle provides service along two routes in the Morningside Heights area for safe and convenient travel. After the Evening shuttle hours, Columbia staff, faculty and students may request Late Night On-Call Service for door-to-door transportation.

This service is available from 11:00pm to 2:00am on weekdays, and from 7:00pm to 2:00am on weekends. The on-call service area extends from Riverside Drive to Amsterdam Avenue between 135th St. and 103rd St., with additional service from Amsterdam Ave. to Frederick Douglass Blvd. between 125th St. and 108th St.

For service, call 212-854-SAFE (212-854-7233) and depending on your destination, a driver or foot escort will be dispatched upon availability.