Living and learning in an Honors College environment can be a challenging experience for many students, particularly at a large university. The academic rigor of an Honors education combined with the demands of high-pressure majors, complex social dynamics, personal stress and turmoil, and the fundamental everyday activities of daily life (including eating, sleeping, and exercising healthfully) can all take a serious toll on students’ overall wellbeing. DCC makes every effort to provide academic, physical, mental, and emotional support for all of its students whenever possible, in addition to promoting campus resources that may address students’ needs.

Within the program at Prince Frederick Hall:

• Both the DCC Director and Associate Director seek to provide mentorship, academic advising, and general support to all students in the DCC community. Student Hours appointments are made available as a genuine opportunity for students to establish connection and conversation with a faculty member who will come to know them well throughout their academic, professional, and even personal development. These appointments additionally provide uninterrupted one-on-one time, especially to address questions regarding courses, four-year planning, and other academic concerns.
• DCC seeks to provide regular programming that fosters a network of support and camaraderie, facilitates community-building among students, and often provides pathways for them to connect with faculty and program staff. These events are always cost-free and open to all current DCC students. These initiatives include:
  • WELCOME WEEK(END): incoming and returning students are embraced at the start of the Fall semester, with a series of activities and gatherings that allow them to start building strong bonds
  • DCC COMMUNITY YOGA: Level 1 and Level 1/2 hatha and vinyasa practices, free of charge and guided by Dr. Jessica H. Lu, who is a certified Yoga Alliance RYT-200 instructor
  • StuCo EVENTS (throughout the semester): a variety of community activities planned and hosted by DCC’s Student Council
  • MAKERSPACE ACTIVITIES (throughout the semester): a variety of creative projects and activities inviting students to gather in communal making and play in the DCC makerspaces (both the MakerSpace and the SoundStudio), facilitated by DCC’s student managers
• Resident Life staff is available 24 hours a day, whether in the form of Community Assistants (who manage the building’s service desk), Resident Assistants (two per each floor), or the Resident Director (who also lives in the building). Prince Frederick Hall is additionally part of a larger North Hill campus community of buildings, supervised by a Community Director. Working as a team, the Resident Life staff is responsible for managing Prince Frederick Hall and often take a lead role in supporting the social and cultural life of the building. 
  • Current Resident Assistants (RAs) on DCC floors: Nicholas Arturo Abreu, Rita Booth, Kamari Buggs, Montanna Thea Norman
  • Resident Director: Nikki Charlestin
  • North Hill Community Director: Jordan Adams

On campus, DCC supports the following programs and services:

• Accessibility and Disability Service (ADS): Honors College students are often high-achieving and function successfully even when faced with overwhelming academic pressure. As such, it can be easy to overlook or ignore when particular issues, circumstances, or constraints hinder their ability to learn and participate fully in academic spaces. Additionally, transitioning--academically, socially, physically, emotionally, and mentally--to a university environment can present new and unexpected challenges for many students and, therefore, affect their ability to learn with confidence and ease. The ADS office seeks to respond to these realities and ensure that all students enjoy equal access to services, programs, activities, and education at the University of Maryland. Students visit the Shoemaker Building to register for/request accessibility and disability accommodations; take exams; borrow assistive devices and equipment; and study, read, and work. The ADS office also works with the Department of Residence Life to coordinate campus housing accommodations and arrange for students to bring an emotional support/assistance animal to campus. DCC strongly encourages students to learn more about ADS resources and, whenever possible, to make use of the office’s support throughout their time at the university. 
• Campus Advocates Respond and Educate to Stop Violence (CARE): CARE is a unit of the University Health Center that provides support (whether via therapy, advocacy, options/action education, or outreach) for students that have been impacted by and/or are encountering sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and/or abuse. Because CARE is not an “official reporting entity,” all information shared with CARE is kept private and confidential; students can even seek resources anonymously without ever revealing identifying information. Resources are provided in person (no appointment needed), as well as via a 24-hour crisis hotline (301-741-3442). Especially because university faculty and staff are bound by official, legal reporting standards, CARE is a vitally important resource for DCC students who may need support without the added complexities and trauma that often accompany official and/or public reporting of sexual assault and violence. 
• Counseling Center: The University of Maryland Counseling Center delivers vital resources to support students’ emotional, mental, and physical health, confidentially and free of charge. Licensed psychologists provide one-on-one counseling, group therapy, emergency response services, informational presentations, various wellness activities and programming, and referrals to off-campus mental health providers. These services are sometimes tailored to specific groups--students of color, LGBTQIA+ students, religiously-affiliated students, and graduate students, for example--that may need particular forms of support. Whether via walk-in hours or by-appointment sessions, students are encouraged to learn more about and take advantage of these services whenever a need, interest, or curiosity arises. 
• Health Center: The University Health Center is a central hub for the distribution of medical care and wellness support at the University of Maryland, including: immunizations, international travel preparation and vaccinations, primary care, women’s healthcare, pharmacy services, physical therapy, substance abuse intervention and treatment, allergy management, transgender healthcare, and suicide prevention. Students can visit walk-in hours or make appointments in order to access these services; costs vary depending on a student’s insurance coverage. Especially because the overwhelming majority of DCC students share living spaces in Prince Frederick Hall, student health is both a personal imperative and community responsibility. All students are encouraged, whenever financially able, to take advantage of the university’s on-campus health services. 
• LGBT Equity Center & Rainbow Terrapin Network: Located in Marie Mount Hall, the LGBT Equity Center seeks to support the development of the University of Maryland as a “fully equitable community that empowers innovators and agents of social justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people.” Whether through community-building events/public programming, informational and advocacy campaigns, resource-sharing, financial awards and scholarships, and more, the LGBT Equity Center supports university students, faculty, staff, and alumni along the full spectrum of gender and sexual orientation. In addition, the Rainbow Terrapin Network aims to cultivate a safer, more inclusive campus by facilitating an expansive slate of trainings and webinars (regarding policies, social practices, language use, etc.) for the university community, especially faculty and staff. DCC strongly supports students who are interested in getting involved with the LGBT Equity Center and Rainbow Terrapin Network’s community and activities on campus. 
• Multicultural Involvement & Community Advocacy Office (MICA): A unit operating within the Division of Student Affairs in the Adele H. Stamp Student Union, MICA provides services to the university’s students, faculty, and staff in pursuit of its mission to envision and build a diverse, multicultural, and just campus that is actively conscious of the intersecting dynamics of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and religion. As a center, MICA facilitates a wide range of public events; provides students with advising and counseling; and educates faculty, staff, and University of Maryland organizations about cultural issues in an effort to improve events, programming, and curricula across campus. Interested students are encouraged to learn more about MICA’s programs, services, and community, and bring nuanced cultural knowledge to bear upon their work and education in DCC. 
• Nyumburu Cultural Center: Founded in 1971, the Nyumburu Cultural Center is a well-recognized hub “for black social, cultural and intellectual interaction” at the University of Maryland. The Center hosts an expansive slate of extracurricular events—including lectures and seminars, art exhibits, and workshops—and offers academic courses focused on Black arts and culture. Donations to the Nyumburu Cultural Center are used to financially support students via the Nyumburu Cultural Center Scholarship Fund, as well as to maintain the Center’s programming and initiatives. DCC strongly encourages its students from African and African Diasporic cultures to visit the center and explore its many opportunities for community and intellectual growth.
• RecWell: University Recreation & Wellness (RecWell) oversees the university’s recreational programming and facilities. Whether through fitness, intramural and club sports, adventure trips, or community programs, RecWell encourages students to prioritize their physical health through robust exercise and activity. All students pay fees that allow them to access multiple facilities on campus, including: Eppley Recreation Center and Natatorium, Outdoor Aquatic Center, Adventure Program and Climbing Wall, Eppley Tennis Courts, Ritchie Coliseum, the School of Public Health, Reckord Armory, Bike Shop, and multiple recreational fields across campus. DCC strongly encourages its community to take advantage of these opportunities to stay active and strike a balance between academics and overall wellbeing. 
• Religious and Faith-Based Communities: The Office of Diversity and Inclusion currently lists a number of religious and faith-based communities both on and off campus that create and hold space for students who wish to explore, maintain, or deepen their faith while at the university. DCC strives to uphold community standards that recognize and respect all students’ religious traditions and faith commitments and, especially, works to accommodate religious holidays and cultural practices with regards to DCC course assignments and expectations.