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A newly created office at Miami University is geared toward fostering better relations between Miami University students and the permanent residents of Oxford.

The Office of Off-Campus Affairs is a division of the Office of Student Affairs and a collaboration with the city of Oxford.

Created last fall, the office will serve as a liaison with Oxford officials.

Heading the new office is Bobbe Burke, coordinator of off-campus affairs and Miami Tribe relations.

The office is in close contact with the Associated Student Government of Miami, especially with Jen House, ASG's secretary for off-campus affairs.

"We're all doing the same kind of things, headed in the same direction," Burke said.

Previously an Oxford Citizen of the Year, Burke oversees the office, which has three primary functions.

First, the office is designed to create educational programs for both students and parents to help students living off-campus. The goal is to ensure that students live effectively and safely as tenants.

Burke tries to get information to students, some of it before they sign a lease, such as what to look for in a lease, and some after they are already tenants, like how to get security deposits back and help with subleasing, to "remind students of things they may not know until it is too late," Burke said.

The second function of the office is educating and assisting students concerning landlord/tenant issues.

The office "will try to get information to students before they sign a lease," Burke said. This category also covers the rights and responsibilities tenants have once they have already signed a lease. Take, for example, the common problem of over-occupation, detrimental for both tenants and their landlords. The new office will try to help students "understand all of the ramifications of the decisions they make."

The third tier of the office's responsibilities is to serve as a liaison between city of Oxford officials and the University to enhance the quality of life for students as well as permanent residents. The office focuses primarily on the conflicts and tensions that arise between permanent residents and students.

One of the office's main goals is more effective dissemination of information. They are working to figure out what students need to know, when they need to know it and how to best deliver it to them.

One tool the office is using is oxfordoffcampus.org, a Web site detailing a great deal of the office's information. Ranging from applicable laws and codes, safety contact information, various resources both on- and off-campus to information about local businesses and trivia, Burke stressed that the Web site is the most convenient way for students to access the office's resources.

The Office of Off-Campus Affairs is funded by a collaboration between the City of Oxford, the Miami University Parents Council and Miami University's Division of Student Affairs.

Other on-campus offices in collaboration are the Office of Health Education, for issues such as the potential outdoor drinking ban; as well as the Office of Ethics and Student Conflict Resolution, formerly the Office of Judicial Affairs. Off-Campus Affairs work with OESCR particularly in cases of roommate conflicts, a problem handily dealt with when students live in dorms, but a trickier situation when students are living off-campus. Collaboration with OESCR ensures that "students have an outlet to solve a conflict," Burke said.

The Office of Off-Campus Affairs is not a resource for students only.

"I hope that neighbors, people who are dealing with students on a regular basis could let us know of any issues they have," Burke said.

Anyone with questions or concerns should contact Bobbe Burke at burkebi@muohio.edu, 529-2268 or stop by Shriver 352.