Community Living Guide

Content

Community Living Guide 2026–2027

Living on campus is an important part of the college experience at the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture (NCTA). The Community Living Guide provides information about residence hall expectations, policies, safety procedures, student responsibilities and resources.

Residents are responsible for understanding and following the policies in this guide, the NCTA Housing Contract and the University of Nebraska Student Code of Conduct.

Introductory Housing Information

Questions

If you have questions about living on campus, contact Residence Life at ncta-reslife@unl.edu.

When contacting Residence Life, include your name, eight-digit NU ID number and a clear description of your question or concern.

Residence Life responds to all emails. If you do not receive a response, please follow up to make sure your message was received.

Students With Disabilities

NCTA is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to students with disabilities in the residence halls.

Students who require a reasonable accommodation must have an accommodation plan issued through disability services. To ensure appropriate arrangements can be made, students who need disability-related housing accommodations should contact the NCTA ADA/504 Coordinator at 308-367-5217.

Nebraska Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act

In accordance with Nebraska law, a student's Housing Contract is for a residence at an educational institution and is incidental to the provision of educational services. Therefore, the Housing Contract is not subject to the Nebraska Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act.

Room Moves and Contract Cancellation

For policies regarding room changes or early cancellation of a housing contract, refer to the NCTA Housing Contract Policy.

Students should follow the procedures outlined in the policy. Fees may be assessed when students do not properly complete the checkout process.

Contract Changes and Corrections

The University of Nebraska and NCTA make every reasonable effort to ensure that housing information is accurate at the time of publication. NCTA reserves the right to make corrections when necessary.

Because NCTA may need to respond to student concerns or changing circumstances, housing and dining operations may also be modified when necessary.

On-Campus Residency Requirement

Unless granted an exemption by the Office of Residence Life, NCTA requires unmarried students who have fewer than 30 credit hours and are under 19 years of age before the first day of fall semester classes to live in University-approved housing for the entire academic year.

Students planning to live somewhere other than an NCTA residence hall must submit a request for exemption to the Residence Life Manager.

The On-Campus Residency Requirement exemption form must be fully completed and signed by the student and the student's parent or guardian, as applicable, and submitted for approval.

Approval is not guaranteed. Please allow up to four weeks for a final response.

How We Will Communicate With You

Email is an official and primary means of communication with residents. Students may also be contacted by telephone, text message or campus mail.

NCTA will communicate with students using their official University email address. Students are responsible for reading information sent to this account.

Electronic communications sent by Residence Life are considered received on the next University business day after they are sent. NCTA is not responsible for messages blocked by spam filters or restrictions imposed by a recipient's email service.

Residence Life staff may also contact students by phone, text or mail about maintenance requests, holiday breaks, safety issues and other matters. Students are expected to respond to these communications in a timely manner.

Students are also responsible for checking their residence hall mailbox regularly.

Residence Life Staff

Residence Life staff work together to support students living on campus and help create an environment that promotes academic success, personal development and involvement in campus life.

Resident Assistants

A Resident Assistant (RA) is a student staff member who lives in a residence hall. RAs provide information, help students adjust to campus life and connect residents with campus resources.

RAs also provide leadership and support, share important information, encourage involvement in campus life and address potential violations of campus and housing policies.

Residence Life Manager

The Residence Life Manager is responsible for the overall management of NCTA's residence halls and provides leadership and supervision for the RA staff.

The Residence Life Manager coordinates residence hall activities, works with students and staff to create a supportive living and learning environment, administers room changes, assists students with personal or academic concerns and helps connect students with campus resources.

The Residence Life Manager is also responsible for enforcement of University housing policies.

Meal Plans

NCTA meal plans provide meals in the NCTA cafeteria or Chandie's Castle. The number of meals available depends on the meal plan purchased.

[View current NCTA meal plan options, dining hours and costs.]

Meal Ingredients and Dietary Needs

NCTA works to accommodate vegetarian, allergy-sensitive and other dietary needs. Students with special dietary needs should contact the manager or floor supervisor of NCTA Dining Services.

NCTA makes reasonable efforts to provide information about ingredients in menu items. However, ingredients and nutritional content may change, and manufacturers may modify products without NCTA's knowledge.

Students with questions or concerns about food ingredients should speak with a member of the dining services management team.

Students who need disability-related dietary accommodations should contact the NCTA ADA/504 Coordinator at 308-367-5217.

Health and Safety

NCTA takes the health and safety of the residential community seriously and is committed to the well-being and success of its students.

Students living on campus are expected to follow University and campus health and safety policies and protocols as they are announced. Residents should use good judgment and consider the health and safety of all members of the community.

Living in a Community

Roommate Relationships

Your relationship with your roommate can be an important part of your college experience. Successful roommate relationships are built on communication, respect, reasonable expectations and compromise.

You Don't Have to Be Best Friends

Roommates do not have to become best friends to live together successfully. Respect and a willingness to communicate clearly are more important.

Even when roommates are not close friends, they should treat each other respectfully and consider one another's needs.

Agree to Disagree

There will be times when your values, preferences or opinions differ from those of your roommate.

Roommates should recognize that they will not agree on everything. Learning to accept differences and compromise is an important part of living with others.

Respect Differences and Safety

Make an effort to understand your roommate and the experiences and perspectives each of you brings to your shared living space.

Each student should feel safe in their campus living environment. Roommates should discuss expectations about issues such as:

  • Locking the room
  • Guests and overnight visitors
  • Study and sleep schedules
  • Noise
  • Sharing personal belongings
  • Alcohol, drugs and smoking
  • Other issues that may affect the shared living environment

Residence Life staff are available to help roommates work through concerns. Contact your RA if you need assistance.

Resolving Roommate Conflicts

Conflict is a normal part of living with others. Learning to address disagreements in a healthy and respectful manner is an important part of the college experience.

If you are experiencing conflict with a roommate, you may:

  • Talk directly with your roommate about the situation.
  • Ask your RA for help preparing for a conversation with your roommate.
  • Ask an RA or the Residence Life Manager to facilitate a conversation.
  • Contact the Residence Life Manager to discuss the possibility of relocating to another room.

Residence Life staff can help facilitate communication, but students are expected to participate in resolving their own differences.

Except in extreme circumstances as determined by the Residence Life Manager, students are expected to live with their assigned roommate for at least two weeks before a room change is granted. This provides time for roommates to get to know one another and work through issues that may arise during the transition to college.

If significant concerns arise during the first two weeks, contact the Residence Life Manager. The Residence Life Manager will determine whether the circumstances warrant an earlier room change.

Community Standards

Living in a residence hall requires students to live independently while interacting with others in mature, civil, respectful and healthy ways.

A residence hall is a community. Residents share spaces and resources and are expected to follow reasonable standards that allow all students to pursue their educational goals.

By signing an NCTA Housing Contract, residents agree to follow the Housing Contract, the University of Nebraska Student Code of Conduct and this Community Living Guide.

Students are responsible for knowing and following these expectations. If you are unsure about a policy, ask your RA or the Residence Life Manager.

NCTA Housing reserves the right to deny or cancel a housing application or contract when, in its reasonable discretion, a student's past or current behavior or criminal convictions indicate a possible risk to the health or safety of another person or property, or present a serious disruption to the NCTA Housing community or living-learning environment.

Concerning Conduct

Residence Life staff are responsible for helping maintain safe and respectful residence hall communities. Staff educate residents about policies and expectations, monitor the living environment and address concerns or potential policy violations.

Examples of concerns Residence Life staff may address include:

  • Excessive noise during quiet hours
  • Use of prohibited appliances, devices or decorations
  • Misuse of permitted items
  • Removing or altering University-provided furniture, appliances, fixtures or décor
  • Failing to maintain a reasonably clean and sanitary living space
  • Keeping an animal without proper authorization
  • Failing to properly care for an approved animal when the situation creates a nuisance or health or safety concern

When an RA, Residence Life Manager, custodian or other University staff member gives a reasonable direction related to health, safety or University policy, students are expected to comply.

Failure to comply with a reasonable direction may result in referral to Residence Life or the appropriate University conduct process.

More serious conduct concerns may include:

  • Possession, use or distribution of alcohol or drugs
  • Arson or tampering with fire safety equipment
  • Threats, harassment or physical violence
  • Possession or use of fireworks, explosives or incendiary devices
  • Possession, display or use of weapons, including imitations or replicas, in campus housing
  • Theft or property damage
  • Trespassing
  • Interference with another person's reasonable expectation of privacy

When Residence Life staff document an alleged violation, the incident may be referred to the Residence Life Manager for review and appropriate follow-up under the University of Nebraska Student Code of Conduct.

Residence Life Staff Response

When Residence Life staff respond to a possible policy violation, residents can expect staff members to remain calm and courteous.

Staff may:

  1. Ask residents or guests to identify themselves and provide identification.
  2. Make reasonable requests to correct a concerning condition or situation.
  3. Ask residents to explain what is happening or what occurred.
  4. Ask residents to wait while additional staff or law enforcement are contacted when necessary.

Residents are expected to cooperate with reasonable staff directions.

Student Conduct Process

When alleged conduct may violate the University of Nebraska Student Code of Conduct, the matter will be addressed through the process established by the Code.

Residence Life staff may create an incident report following an interaction that indicates a possible policy violation. The report will be reviewed to determine whether additional action is appropriate.

If additional action is warranted, the resident may receive an electronic notice requesting an informal meeting. The notice will identify the alleged violation and provide information about the student's rights and responsibilities during the process.

Students may have an advisor accompany them to an informal meeting. The advisor may be any person selected by the student, including an attorney. Students are responsible for any fees charged by their advisor.

Informal Meeting

Student conduct meetings are administrative. Each student involved meets individually with a Conduct Officer.

During the meeting:

  • The resident and Conduct Officer review the conduct process, incident report and policies involved.
  • The Conduct Officer listens to the resident's explanation and may ask questions to gather additional information.
  • The Conduct Officer may clarify policies, the student's responsibilities as a member of the community and the impact of the incident.

Students are expected to cooperate, communicate honestly and respond to Conduct Officer requests in a timely manner.

Email is the primary method of communication during the conduct process. Students are responsible for monitoring their NCTA email and meeting communicated deadlines.

Administrative Resolution

If the Residence Life Manager determines that it is more likely than not that a resident violated a policy, an Administrative Resolution may be prepared.

The Administrative Resolution identifies the violation and any sanctions or outcomes intended to hold the student accountable and provide an educational response.

Students may choose whether to accept the Administrative Resolution. If a student does not accept the resolution, the case may be forwarded to the Office of the Associate Dean.

Students who accept an Administrative Resolution must complete assigned sanctions by the established deadlines.

Residence Hall Sanctions

Student conduct is considered part of the educational process. Students who violate NCTA or Housing policies may be referred to the Residence Life Manager or Office of the Associate Dean.

Possible sanctions include:

  • Written warning
  • Educational requirements
  • Restitution
  • Probation for a specified period
  • Housing relocation
  • Suspension
  • Expulsion
  • Housing contract termination

Students who do not complete assigned sanctions by established deadlines may have a registration hold placed on their account and may face additional conduct action.

Refer to the University of Nebraska Student Code of Conduct for additional information about sanctions and the appeal process.