Definitions + Jargon
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Members of the Ohio University community often carry on conversations in shorthand - full of acronyms, abbreviations, and jargon not readily understandable to new community members or others. Here are some of the highlights to help you.

• 1804 Lounge - A formal lounge and meeting space located on the first floor of Baker Center.
  
  
• A-News - An abbreviation for the Athens News, a local free newspaper published twice a week.
  
  
• ACRN - The All-Campus Radio Network is a student run cable radio station located on the third floor of the Radio-Television Building (RTVC).
  
  
• ACT - Athens Community Transport, the city-run bus service.
  
  
• Alden - Vernon R. Alden Library serves the Athens campus as the central library facility; the building can seat 3,000 readers. The Ohio University libraries' collections contain over two million printed volumes, 2.3 million units of microfilm material, and 13,500 current periodical subscriptions
  
  
• ALICE - ALICE is the name for Ohio University's library catalog. ALICE includes information not only for the Athens campus, but for all of the regional campuses as well
  
  
• ARA - An administrative resident assistant is an undergraduate student who assists the Resident Director in management and coordination of the residence hall.
  
  
• ARD - the Assistant Resident Director (ARD) is a graduate student who assists in the administration of a residence hall or complex.
  
  
• Aquatic Center - Located next to Grover Center, the Aquatic Center houses an Olympic size pool.
  
  
• Athena, The - Ohio University's yearbook.
  
  
• Athena Theater - A three-screen movie theater on Court St.
  
  
• Athens MidDay - The local news show generated by broadcast journalism majors in Scripps Hall that airs on channel 25 at noon on weekdays (Monday through Thursday)
  
  
• Attack Cat - The logo/symbol that represents Ohio University Athletic teams.
  
  
• Baker - The abbreviated name of the John Calhoun Baker University Center.
  
  
• BC - The abbreviated name for Baker University Center.
  
  
• Bird (Bird Arena) - An ice arena located behind Grover Center that is home to Ohio University hockey and open to the public for ice skating.
  
  
• Bobcat - The mascot for Ohio University's athletic teams

• Bobcat Cash - Bobcat Cash is a pre-paid debit card -- money you've put on account -- that can be used to make purchases at a variety of locations on campus.

• BSCPB - The Black Student Cultural Programming Board is a volunteer board of students who present entertainment, social, cultural and educational programs to the Athens campus.
  
  
• Bromley - A residence hall acquired by the University in 2001, located at Congress and Union Streets. It was previously known as the College Inn.
  
  
• Bursar -The Bursar is responsible for the billing, collecting, depositing, and/or refunding of all money owed to and/or collected by Ohio University.

• Campus Gate - The entrance to college green, located at the corner of Court and Union Streets.

• CAP - The College Adjustment Program helps new students adjust to college and meet their educational goals; it is operated by the Academic Advancement Center in Alden Library.

• CARDD - The Coalition Advocating Responsible Drinking Decisions, comprised of students, administrators, faculty, and community members, works to reduce high risk drinking by students.

• Catcab - A free service that transports individuals with mobility limitations or health problems by van to campus locations.
  
  
• CCS - The Center for Community Service works in partnership with campus and community providing service opportunities that foster mutual learning and prepare students for responsible citizenship.

• CNS - Computer Network Services is a place where OU students obtain telephone services, internet connections, computer assistance, ID card services, and others.
  
  
• Class Gateway - The entrance to College Green that is located across from Baker Center, at the corner of College and Union Streets.

• Colleges - Ohio University includes within it ten different colleges. Each has its own Dean. They are:

  College of Arts and Sciences
  College of Business
  College of Communication
  College of Education
  College of Fine Arts
  College of Health and Human Services
  Honors Tutorial College
  College of Osteopathic Medicine
  Russ College of Technology and Engineering
  University College
  
  

• College Green - College green is located on the central part of campus. Buildings on College Green include Chubb Hall, Cutler Hall, and Alden Library.

• Convo - The Convocation Center, located on West Green, houses Ohio University Bobcat basketball, volleyball, and wrestling matches, and offices for Intercollegiate Athletics. The building seats 14,000 people, and is also used for Commencement and concerts. The Convo is also a residence hall housing 240 students.
  
  
• Courtyard - Shorthand for University Courtyard, an apartment complex for juniors, seniors and graduate students that is located on University property on Richland Ave., across from the Ohio University Inn.
  
  
• CPS - Counseling and Psychological Services is located on the third floor in Hudson Health Center. It is comprised of staff counselors and psychologists that provide students with confidential counseling and psychological therapy on an individual or group basis.

• CSLS - The Center for Student Legal Services is an independent, non-profit law office providing legal information, advice, representation, and mediation services for students. It is located at 50 S. Court St., Suite D.

• DARS - A transcript, updated quarterly, that displays the courses from which you may select in order to complete degree requirements and shows how the courses you have already taken apply toward those requirements.

• Drop/Add - The time period where students can drop or add courses to the their schedules for the upcoming quarter.

• Execmail - An Email program similar to Simeon/Eudora provided to faculty, staff and students.

• FAFSA - A free financial aid form that must be completed in order to receive financial assistance from the government and the university. FAFSA stands for "Free Application for Federal Student Aid."

• Front Four - The group of residence halls at the front of the South Green that includes Brown, Crawford, McKinnon, and Pickering.

• Front Room - Located in Baker University Center, the Front Room is the campus coffeehouse.

• GA - A graduate associate; a graduate student who assists either faulty or staff.

• Gam - The abbreviated name of the Gamertsfelder residence hall located on the East Green.

• GLBT - Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered.

• GPA - An acronym for grade point average.

• Health Ed - The office of Health Education and Wellness, located in Hudson Health Center.
  
  
• Graffiti Wall ("The Wall")- Wall on the face of the Bentley Hall addition, at the top of the Richland Ave. bridge, where students or student organizations can paint messages. The wall was displaced by construction for the addition, but is being replaced. Also known as the "painting wall."
  
  
• Howard Hall Site - Formerly the site of the demolished Howard Hall, the Howard Hall site is a parklike setting adjacent to Voigt Hall at the corner of College and East Union Streets.
  
  
• Hudson - Hudson Health Center houses the offices of Counseling and Psychological Services, Environmental Health and Safety, Health Education and Wellness, and Student Health Services.

• IFC - The Interfraternity Council governs the activities of National Interfraternity Council fraternities that have chapters at Ohio University.

• ISU - The International Student Union is an umbrella organization for over 20 international organizations that coordinates programming for the campus.
  
  
• Inn, The - for the Ohio University Inn and Conference Center. Located on Richland Ave. adjacent to the campus, it is owned by the Ohio University Foundation.
  
  
• J-School - The nickname for the School of Journalism.

• Jeff Hill - A steep hill that connects East Green to College Green, named for Jefferson Hall which is located at the bottom of the hill.

• Judiciaries - University Judiciaries is a department of the university that administers the Student Code of Conduct and its related processes. It is located at on the third floor of the Beckley Building (above College Book Store) at the corner of Court and Union Sts.
  
  
• LGBT - An acronym for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender."

• MCP - The Office of Multicultural Programs provides a diverse range of programs and opportunities that are educational, recreational, and cultural.

• Mem. Aud. - The nickname for Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium (also known as TBAMA), located on the College Green.

• Monument - A popular gathering spot for students on the College Green, it was erected in 1893 by the County of Athens in honor of soldiers and sailors who served in the Civil War.
  
  
• Morton Hill - Morton Hill is located between Shively and Morton Hall. Also known as Shively Hill.

• Mulberry - An e-mail program provided to faculty, staff and students.

• New South Green or New South - The cluster of residence halls behind the Old South or Front Four residence halls, connected by a catwalk between Old South and the Hocking River.

• NPHC - The National Pan-Hellenic Council governs the activities of National Pan-Hellenic Council traditionally Black fraternities and sororities that have chapters at Ohio University.

• Oak - A set of basic services for all students that include personal email, personal web space, and online directory services (phonebook). Refers to the name of the computer server on which these services are located.

• Old South Green or Old South - The group of four residence halls at the front of the South Green that includes Brown, Crawford, McKinnon, and Pickering (also known as the "Front Four").

• OUPD - The Ohio University Police Department is a full service law enforcement agency serving the Ohio University community.

• Overage - An overage check is a check issued by the University and provided to a recipient of financial aid. It is issued when a student's financial aid is in excess of their tuition and fees for a given term
  
  
• Painting Wall - Located on Richland Avenue, the painting wall is an area where students or student organizations can graffiti messages.
  
  
• Ping - The Ping Student Recreation Center is a recreational center that has a climbing wall, five gymnasiums for basketball and volleyball, two multipurpose gymnasiums for floor hockey, soccer, and other activities, eight courts for raquetball and walleyball, a four-lane walking and jogging track, and cardiovascular workout equipment.
  
  
• The Post - The Post is Athens' daily morning newspaper. It is published by Ohio University students while classes are in session during fall, winter and spring courses. About 14,000 papers are distributed daily from more than 200 locations throughout Athens County.
  
  
• POWER - Promoting Ohio University Wellness, Education, and Responsibility. It is an organization of peer educators programming on issues facing today's college students.

• Provost - The chief academic officer of the university.

• RA - A resident assistant; a student staff member who serves the 30-40 residents of a floor section in a variety of ways.

• RAC Code - The Registration Access Code is a four-digit number that allows students to register and change classes as well as listen to their schedule by telephone through TRIPS.

• Res Life - The Department of Residence Life is responsible for staff and programs in 41 campus residence halls housing nearly 7,000 students.
  
  
• Ridges - The Ridges was the site of the Southeast Ohio Mental Health Center until it was purchased by Ohio University. Currently, the Child Development Center, The Ridges Auditorium, and many other Ohio University offices are located there. It is located across the Hocking River from the Convocation Center.

• RD - A resident director; a full-time professional staff member who lives on campus and supervises and coordinates the activities of 1- 4 residence halls.

• RTV - The Radio/Television Communications Building, which houses the Scripps College of Communication and WOUB television/radio, and is located on College St.

• SA - A security aide; a paraprofessional staff member who patrols residence greens during evening hours to assist students and confront violations of University policy and law.

• SAC - The Student Activities Commission is a commission of Student Senate that allocates funds to student organizations.

• SAP - Satisfactory academic progress; SAP is a federal standard that stipulates that all financial aid applicants/recipients have at least a 2.0 minimum g.p.a., complete the minimum credit hours earned for the appropriate enrollment status (typically 12 hours for a full-time undergraduate students), and complete degree requirements within a certain time frame (typically 18 quarters for an undergraduate student).
  
  
• Safe Zone - The Safe Zone project was designed to increase awareness of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender issues at Ohio University. Safe Zone consists of a two hour training session and is open anyone in the Ohio University community.
  
  
• Scott Quad - Scott Quad is a building on University Terrace that houses services such as Campus Safety, University News Services and Periodicals, as well as being home to 149 students as a co-ed residence hall.

• Shively - Shively Hall is residence hall housing 148 students. It is located on East Green and houses Shively Dining Hall on its first floor. Shively Hill is the hill running from the East Green to the College Green.

• SI - Supplemental instruction is a series of free help session that are provided to students in traditionally difficult courses with large class sizes. They are facilitated by students who have successfully completed the class.

• South Pole - A gathering place for dances, performances, and other student events, located under Nelson Dining Hall on the South Green.

• Specialty - A local bookstore on Court Street that sells textbooks for classes and is the official on-line bookseller for Ohio University.
  
  
• Stroud's Run - A state park located outside of Athens.
  

• Syllabus - A list of class requirements given to students by faculty, generally on the first day of class.

• TA - A teaching associate; a graduate student who teaches classes or assists a professor in teaching.

• TBAMA - An acronym for Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium, also referred to as "Mem Aud."
  
  
• TCOM - The abbreviated name of the School of Telecommunications, one of five schools within the College of Communication at Ohio University. It is one of the oldest and largest programs in electronic media in the United States.
  
  
• Top Three - The nickname given to the Voigt, Bryan, and Scott Quad residence halls, given their location on top of the hill where College Green is located.

• tRAC - The Residence Action Council is an advising and programming organization representing students living in residence halls.

• Transcript - An official document produced by the university that records grades and grade point averages of students.

• UC - The abbreviated name for University College.

• UPC - University Program Council is a volunteer board of students who present entertainment, social, cultural and educational programs to the Athens campus.

• Uptown - The commercial strip on Court Street, adjacent to the campus.

• WPA - The Women's Panhellenic Association governs the activities of National Panhellenic Conference sororities that have chapters at Ohio University.