Alabama's Public Liberal Arts University

Housing & Residence Life

Make Your Room More Like Home!

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Borders
Picture Hanging
Room Furniture
Ceiling Decorations
Appliances
Lofts
Holiday Decorations
Note
Your room will be your home for the next nine months so it is important to make it as comfortable as possible. Decorations can add immensely to making your accommodations more homelike and attractive. Decorating your room is an opportunity for you and your roommate to express your creativity. As you decorate your room, please keep the following guidelines in mind.

Painting
If your room needs painting, please make a request to the Housing & Residence Life Office.  We will send in a work order and the UM painters will take care of it for you.  All rooms have recently been painted but in some instances, an additional once over may be required.  If a room is repainted due to damages during your stay, you will be charged for the job!

Rooms may only be painted with paint purchased from the University and by University Painters.  

Borders
You may not put up any type of border in your room (paint or wallpaper). Some rooms may have border already up. You may remove it as long as it does not damage the walls. As the UM painters make their way through the buildings, they will paint over or remove all borders from all rooms. If you have a border in your room when you move in, be sure to indicate that on the Room Inventory Form. If the border is there when you move out, and you did not indicate that it was there when you moved in, you will be charged for removal.

Picture Hanging
Do not put nails or staples in the walls or any sticky substance or decals that won't come off doors or walls. We suggest a substance like Handy-Tak for affixing posters to the walls. Some residence halls have picture molding along the walls. You may use small nails to hang pictures in your room if your hall is equipped with picture molding. Your account will be charged for any destruction of the walls and doors due to hanging posters, pictures, etc.

Room Furniture
If you would like to bring furniture from home, you may store the University's furniture in your building's storage area, if space is available. Check with a staff member for information about storage areas and guidelines for storage. If space is available, you may store furniture when there is a staff member on-duty in your building (in the evenings after 6:00 pm). All furniture must be returned to the room and set up before you check-out of your room or your account will be charged a fine. However, because of recent renovations in Peck and Hanson Hall, UM furniture must be kept in the rooms and cannot be placed in storage. 

Waterbeds are not allowed in the residence halls.

Ceiling Decorations
Do not attach anything to the ceiling of your residence hall or room. This includes fishnets, flags, parachutes, stars, etc.

Appliances
Compact refrigerators, 4.1 cu. ft. or less, are allowed in individual rooms. If you have a refrigerator in your room, a $15 per semester energy surcharge will be assessed ($5 per summer term).

There are a limited number of MicroFridge (fridge/freezer/microwave) units available for rental through Housing & Residence Life, at a rate of $160 per academic year.

Due to energy restrictions, individual microwaves are not allowed in residence hall rooms except in Peck Hall. Each residence hall has at least one microwave in a common area available for you to use.

Holiday Decorations
Live trees are not permitted in the residence hall common areas or in individual rooms. All lights and cords must be in safe working condition and be UL-approved. Candles or other open flames are not permitted.

Lofts
You may construct a loft for your room. It must be free standing (not attached to walls, floor or ceiling) and it must be safe. All lofts must be removed at the end of the spring term, or when you move out of the room, and the beds must be returned to normal condition. The University assumes no liability for injury or damage due to lofts. If you do not remove your loft, your account will be charged $50 and the loft will be removed and disposed of.  Because Hanson, Peck and Lund cannot store University beds, a loft that allows the entire bed unit to sit on it is the only type of loft can be used.  If you don't use a loft, you can bunk your beds.  Bunking pegs are available to purchase in the Housing & Residence Life Office.

Note: All personalization must be removed at the close of each academic year or when you move out of the room. If you fail to remove all personalization, your account will be charged for removing it and for the repair of any damage caused.