In case the title didn’t clue you in, this post is designed to make sure when you get on campus and hear things like, “t-grill, dhall, loro, or the greenery” you’ll know what everyone means. Here is a list (adapted from fellow PAA Kathleen’s list) that will enlighten you about any and all abbreviations or acronyms UR students use.
A&S:Arts & Sciences, as in School of - the vast majority of departments are in the School of Arts & Sciences, so when you are still ‘undecided’, you are enrolled in the School of Arts & Sciences, and you only change schools if you declare a major in the Jepson School of Leadership Studies or the Robins School of Business.
B1, B2: Basement Level 1, Basement Level 2 – refers to the lower levels of Boatwright Memorial Library. You’ll most likely hear something like, “Meet me in b2 with coffee.”
CAPS: Counseling and Psychological Services - this is a free and confidential resource that you can use at UR for any problems you might have, from home-sickness to stress to depression to grief to eating disorders to relationship problems, and anything in between - no problem you might have is too big or too small!
CDC: Career Development Center - this is a fantastic resource on campus that will help you with your resume, finding a job or internship, connecting you with alumni, or anything else you might need related to your career!
CCE: Center for Civic Engagement - yet another wonderful resource on campus (well, they’re all wonderful or fantastic or fabulous or something along those lines, but what else would you expect?) that will help you find volunteer and civic engagement opportunities both on campus and off campus.
DHall: Heilman Dining Hall – where you will eat 7/10 meals. This newly renovated, full equipped cafeteria holds all your dietary needs.
Greenery: Westhampton Green – refers to the plot of grass surrounded by South Court, North Court, Gray Court, Keller Hall, and Modlin. Truthfully, you will probably hear “the green” more often than “the greenery” but that is only because I personally started the latter phrase and it hasn’t quite infected campus lingo (yet…). So get out there, and say “greenery!”
LAIS: Latin America and Iberian Studies - this department focuses on all studies relating to the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America (you will also find all Spanish classes listed here).
LoRo: Lora Robins Court – half of the 1styear females will be living in Lora Robins Court. On the Westhampton side of campus, this all-girl dorm houses around 250 of you lucky ladies.
MRC: Media Resource Center - this is a part of the library where you can find all sorts of movies and other media items to take out.
OA: Orientation Advisor - when you arrive on campus in August, you will be placed in an orientation group with about 20 other new students. Each orientation group has two OAs - one girl, one guy—who will help you navigate Orientation. And if you’re lucky enough, you’ll get me!
PAA: Peer Advising Associate - A fantastic, wonderful, helpful, friendly, student who wants to assist you in any way as you make the transition from high school to college here are Richmond. A.k.a. me!
RA: Resident Assistant - each floor (or section of a floor in the larger dorms) has one RA. This person has keys if you get locked out of your room, organizes activities for your floor, and is basically a go-to person for any and all problems you might have.
RC: Richmond College - the guys’ college (see Kathleen’s post on the coordinate system for more information).
-> RCSGA: Richmond College Student Government Association
RHA: Residence Hall Association - a group of involved students elected from each dorm that organizes fun events around campus - including the amazing Winter Wonderland, with horse-drawn carriages and Santa and hot chocolate in December!
ROTC: Reserve Officer Training Corps -UR has an Army ROTC program for those interested in being part of the military.
T-Grill, Tyler’s, The Grill: Tyler’s Grill – the quick stop for food on the go. Tyler’s is the perfect place to grab a salad, wrap, or burger if you’re in a hurry, or just don’t feel like going to dhall.
UR: University of Richmond. On occasion you may hear URich, another common acronym.
WC: Westhampton College - the girls’ college (again, see Kathleen’s post about the coordinate system for more information)
-> WCGA: Westhampton College Government Association
WGSS: Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies - this is an interdisciplinary major or minor that is almost never referred to by its full name, but rather only by its initials.
WILL: Women Involved in Living and Learning - in their own words, WILL is “the first university program in the U.S. to combine coursework in women, gender and sexuality studies with leadership training for women students.”
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or maybe :-O
