Resident Student Questions

Where do we go for housewares for the rooms?

The students suggest going to Target on Rowland Blvd, north on 101, about 10 minutes. Tell students there is an IKEA over in Emeryville, and some good hardward stores in the area.

Where do students go for banking?

Banking is strictly a personal preference. Students go to Wells Fargo at 4th and "B" in San Rafael. Wells Fargo has an ATM in the Montecito Shopping Center, close to campus.

Bank of America is located at 1000 4th Street at "A" in San Rafael. West America Bank has branches at 1515 4th Street, and at 1108 5th Ave in San Rafael. There is a Bank of Marin office at 1101 4th Street in San Rafael.

Where are the closest grocery stores?

Students tell us that the local Safeway stores have the best prices. There is a recently renovated Safeway store on "B" Street in San Rafael, and there is one in Terra Linda. The closest market is United at Grand and 3rd in San Rafael. There is a Whole Foods Store at 340 Third Street, across the street from the Montecito Shopping Center. In addition to picking up groceries, students should pick up other supplies at these stores. Students living on campus are responsible for providing their own toilet paper and cleaning supplies because they are responsible for cleaning their own rooms.

Where do students do laundry?

Make sure the students know this because the parents do not want to see their son's or daughter's laundry again! Each hall has washers and dryers. Student use their Penguin Pass for laundry by adding value to their cards.

How do students get into San Francisco?

There is public transportation via Golden Gate Transit. Students may also take the ferry.

However, the bus that runs on Grand Avenue, in front of the campus, runs limited hours, and never in the evening. Many students will walk to 4th and Heatherton in downtown San Rafael. That is a transportation center. Advise students against walking alone to 4th and Heatherton in the early morning or evening hours.

PHONE PROBLEMS

TELEPHONES - WHAT'S MY PHONE NUMBER?

Tell the student to check the port in his/her room. The number should be located near it. If it does not, dial X0123 for assistance.

MY PHONE DOESN'T WORK - WHAT SHOULD I DO?

Most of the time the phone does not work because the phone line is not plugged in solidly to the wall. Unplug it and plug it back from both the wall and the back of the telephone. Also, check the cord from the handset to the phone. If the student has done this and it still does not work, call X0123 for assistance.

MY PHONE WORKS AND I CAN CALL OUT BUT I CANNOT RECEIVE CALLS.

The ringer may be turned off, or the student may have given out the wrong phone number. Call X0123 to verify the student's extension.

WHERE DO I GET A PHONE BOOK?

Tell the student to go to the Mailroom for a Marin County phonebook or remind them that they can go to www.yellowpages.com for assistance.

CAN I CALL OFF CAMPUS/ or MY CALLS WON’T GO OUT

 Yes. Dial 9 and the number the student wishes to call. For some area code 415 calls a phone card must be used. San Francisco calls are toll calls. All long distance calls must be made with a phone card. Phone cards may be purchased in the bookstore.

INTERNET PROBLEMS

1. Your PC must have an network/ethernet card.  To determine whether you have one click START, SETTINGS, NETWORK CONNECTIONS.  You should see one called 'Local Area Connection'.  If you do not see this you will need to purchase a network card.
2. You must have a Cat 5 Ethernet cable.  These cables look like a phone cable but are thicker.  They can be purchased at Office Depot, Staples or Electronics Plus.  They can also be purchased at CompUSA but the prices are double of those elsewhere. 
3. There are jacks in each office.  The GREY jacks that start with a D, or say DATA, are for the Internet.  In most dorm rooms jacks A, B and C are active.  So if you are in room 100, the jacks that say D100A, D100B and D100C should work.  The D port is not normally active. 
4. Your PC must be enabled for DHCP.  To do this:
   
   1. click START, SETTINGS, NETWORK CONNECTIONS
   2. Right mouse click the Local Area Network and select properties. 
   3. You will see the following screen.  Select TCP/IP and click PROPERTIES
      
      
      
      
   4. Make sure the screen looks like this:
      
      
      
   5. If things still don't work, call x0123 and ask for help.