Beehive Blog–January 17, 2023

RCTC Student Blog

Check out the following links for important RCTC information

Financial Aid
Failure for Non-Attendance and Failure to Withdraw
Winter Welcome and One Stop Hours
Free STI Tests
Weather Emergencies
Student Printing
Academic Achievement Lists Announced
Phi Theta Kappa Invites Coming Soon
Food Services
Learning Center is Here For You
Tobacco Free Campus

 



FINANCIAL AID

RCTC delivers all Financial Aid disbursements, student payroll checks, and refunds through BankMobile disbursements, a technology solution powered by BMTX, Inc.

As a student, when your payment is ready to be issued to you, the funds will be sent to “BankMobile Disbursements.” BankMobile will then issue your Financial Aid overage check and/or student payroll check using the refund preference you choose with BankMobile.

For more information, look for posting on campus, on the web, and in your student email account!

If you have questions about BankMobile disbursement services, please contact the RCTC Cashier’s Office at 507-285-7311.

View our institution’s contract with BankMobile, powered by BMTX, Inc.

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FAILURE FOR NON-ATTENDANCE AND FAILURE TO WITHDRAW

Instructors may assign students the grades of FN and FW.  The grade designations are for students who never attend a class (FN) and students who stop attending a class during the semester but do not officially withdraw (FW).  These grades carry the same weight as a failing grade (F).  Withdrawals from courses where students received a FN or FW may be made through the eServices website up until the withdraw deadline from a course.

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WELCOME AND ONE STOP CENTER HOURS

Our Welcome and One Stop Center has adjusted hours for the remainder of the spring semester.

The hours during the week are 8am to 5pm with the exception of:

Wednesday – 8am – 6pm

Friday – 8am – 4:30pm

For more information kindly visit our website.

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FREE STI TESTS

Free Chlamydia and Gonorrhea tests (usual fee is $25 for both) January 23rd – February 1st, in the Student Health Services.

A urine specimen is required for the tests. Call 507-285-7261 or visit MyHealth.RCTC.edu to schedule your confidential appointment today.

Appointment times are limited. No walk-in appointments!

Symptoms of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are rarely present. If you are at risk for a STI, you NEED to be tested.

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WEATHER EMERGENCIES

As we approach the winter season, now is the time to remind everyone of the policies and procedures to follow should classes or activities need to be canceled, or the campus need to close, due to weather or another emergency.

During an emergency, all current RCTC students and employees automatically receive an RCTC Emergency Alert at their RCTC email account.  If anyone wishes to receive an alert as a text message, a phone message, or an email message to a non-RCTC email address, they are encouraged to sign up for the RCTC Emergency Alert, our emergency alert messaging system.

In addition, RCTC’s Facebook, Twitter, and website will have up-to-date information on any change in status, and the College’s main switchboard will have a recorded message at 507-285-7210.  Television media outlets KTTC-TV; FOX47-TV, and KAAL-TV will be notified for the status change to scroll across the bottom of the television station’s screen.

Whenever possible, decisions affecting day classes will be made by 6am and decisions affecting evening classes or activities will be made by 3pm. If the decision is to have a delayed start (i.e., the campus will open at 10am), all classes with a start time before that time will NOT meet.  If the campus closes early because of inclement weather, all classes that start before the closure time will begin to meet at their regularly scheduled time but must conclude at the closure time.

The decision to remain open or close during inclement weather is never an easy call; however, the safety of our students and employees are always part of the equation.  Those safety questions include, but are not limited to:

Are state highways open and snowplows operating?

  • Are local transit systems running?
  • Is wind, cold, or ice a factor?
  • Are power or heating systems affected?

Because weather and related road conditions are not the same in every area where students and employees live, the decision as to whether it is safe to travel ultimately resides with each individual.

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STUDENT PRINTING

RCTC implemented student print accounting to promote Green conservation, help control rising printing costs and aid in keeping student technology fees down.  The following information represents RCTC’s student printing guidelines.

RCTC students will receive 500 sheets/credits of paper into their print accounts at the start of each semester which can be used for either single-sided or double-sided (duplex) black laser printing.

Currently, the Library Technology Center (LTC), located on the third floor of the library, and the Comprehensive Learning Center (AT 306), support duplex printing.  RCTC is continually expanding duplex printing services throughout campus and will keep updated changes on the RCTC Student Printing webpage.

Each student that logs on to a campus computer will be able to track and purchase additional sheets/credits of paper through the print management account icon on the computer desktop.

For frequently asked questions and additional details, visit the student printing website.

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ACADEMIC ACHEIVEMENT LISTS ANNOUNCED

Excellence in scholastic achievement is recognized by compiling three lists of students.  The qualifications for each list are as follows:

President’s List: Students must have completed 12 credits or more for the same semester with a 4.0 GPA. Students on the Presidents List will receive an email of recognition signed by the President.

Dean’s List: Students must have completed 12 credits or more for the same semester with a 3.5-3.99 GPA.  Students on the Dean’s List will receive an email of recognition signed by the VPs of Academic Affairs and Student Affairs.

High Academic Achievement: Students must have completed 9-11 credits for the same semester with a 3.5-4.0 GPA. Students on the High Academic Achievement List will receive an email of recognition signed by the VPs of Academic Affairs and Student Affairs.

Additionally, the credit courses completed must have earned grade points.  Credits for P (Pass) and grades of I (Incomplete), AU (Audit), W (Withdrawal), and NC (No Credit) are excluded from the count. These lists are posted on campus, as well as distributed to local media.  A listing can also be downloaded from the College website.

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PHI THETA KAPPA INVITES COMING SOON!

Attention students with a GPA of 3.5 or higher! Make sure to check your email in the next few weeks for an invitation to join Phi Theta Kappa, the ONLY Honor Society officially recognized by RCTC. Phi Theta Kappa members make the most of their community college experience by being active members of our chapter and contributing their time and talents to activities related to PTK’s hallmarks of scholarship, leadership, fellowship, and service.

Invitations to join Phi Theta Kappa will come directly from Dr. Jamie Mahlberg, RCTC psychology instructor and Phi Theta Kappa advisor. You can feel comfortable treating all other “honor society” invitations (honorsociety.org, honorsocietyinvite@gmail.com, etc.) as spam and deleting them.

To learn more about Phi Theta Kappa, you can visit ptk.org or email Dr. Jamie Mahlberg at jamie.mahlberg@rctc.edu.

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HUNGRY? CHECK OUT THE FOOD SERVICE!

Food is available for purchase on the main RCTC campus:

  • Fresh Stop Café is also located on the 3rd floor College Center and will be open Monday through Friday, from 8am-1:30pm.

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LEARNING CENTER IS HERE FOR YOU!

The Learning Center provides FREE tutoring for all RCTC and WSU-R students to help them build the skills and confidence needed to be successful in their coursework and reach their academic goals.

Our tutors are specialists in their content areas and are eager to help you.

For Spring 2023 semester, the Learning Center will be open for both in-person and online tutoring. There are many different options for getting help: drop-in help, scheduled appointments with a tutor, email questions and essay reviews, and scheduling workspaces. Check out our website for hours and services and find what is best for you.

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TOBACCO FREE CAMPUS-INSIDE AND OUT

RCTC is a TOBACCO-FREE campus. Smoking, tobacco use, and tobacco sales (including the use or sale of smokeless tobacco products) are prohibited on college-owned, operated, or leased property, including all college-owned vehicles. This includes any building or structure; athletic playing field, playground, parking lot, or any other outdoor property owned, leased, or contracted by RCTC.

The policy is not intended to deny individuals their use of tobacco products and provides for an exception for tobacco use in private vehicles in college parking lots. You can view the full policy here.

There are cessation services available in Olmsted County.

Quitplan Services, 1-800-354-PLAN

American Cancer Society, 1-800-ACS-2345

American Lung Association of Minnesota, 1-800-LUNG-USA

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