Supervised Independent Living

Program Expectations:

• Students must be here and willing to take an active part in their education
• Students must be prepared to function in an independent adult learning environment
• Students are recommended to enroll in 12 credit hours in the fall/spring semester to be considered full time students (*DFPS requirements however are only for 6 credit hours per semester)
• Students must check in a minimum of 3 times per month during their first year on campus, including attending events hosted by Island Harbor
• Students will adhere to Island Harbor’s SIL Terms and Conditions, to be reviewed each semester
• Students will work on a transition to unsupervised independent living.

Island Harbor Events:

Students are required to attend a minimum number of events hosted by Island Harbor each semester. These events are intended to help students develop practical life skills that will not only assist them in their time here on campus, but to succeed in the workplace and in life following graduation. Event days/times may vary, but are planned around SIL student schedules so that there is not a schedule conflict. They will be planned out at least one month in advance so that students who work can make arrangements to be off for events they want to attend. These events have the following goals:

• Build a group dynamic that allows students to safely ask questions or discuss topics related to transitioning out of foster care, while providing support to others.
• Learn to effectively integrate into the TAMU-CC community academically, socially, emotionally, and mentally
• Learn practical skills to live independently as well as good work/study habits
• Learn healthy relationship habits, including interpersonal communication skills, conflict resolution skills, using community resources, and establishing permanent relationships with caring adults
• Learn to address personal and interpersonal issues as they arise with healthy coping skills
• Learn how to effectively plan for the future by goal setting and forming a personal identity

Island Harbor SIL Program and TAMU-CC respect the students’ rights to:

• Plan and manage work, school, social, and personal schedules
• Access community resources to meet personal needs
• Manage finances and open bank accounts
• Choose to participate in any (or none) of the activities offered at TAMU-CC
• Provide input into services offered by Island Harbor
• Receive assistance with meeting Transition/Service Plan goals

The state’s current daily rate for a student in a college dorm setting is $43.56 (as of September 2021).  The state will pay this daily rate for each student who participates in the SIL program.  Funds are released on a monthly basis to the University’s Business office, where the Bursar then disperses the money to Islander Housing for rent, Islander Dining for the meal plan (if needed), and the rest to the student.  TAMU-CC does not keep any state funding. 

A minimum of $90 will be paid to the student monthly from the SIL daily rate.  This is to maintain an active cell phone and to purchase any incidentals the students may need.  Students may receive more than $90 per month if there is any money left over after paying their rent and meal plan.  Any refund to the student is sent to BankMobile for disbursement based on the refund preference that the students has selected.   

DFPS will pay for students who are enrolled in at least 6 hours of classes in each regular term (Fall and Spring semester).  They will also pay for students in Island Harbor during summer months, provided the youth takes at least 3 credit hours during one of the summer terms OR works or volunteers at least 20 hours per week.  

DFPS will continue to pay for students until their 21^st birthday.  If the student is still in school, DFPS will no longer continue to pay, and the student becomes responsible for payment of their rent and meal plans.  Youth can work with Island Harbor staff to try to get donations and work with local nonprofits for rental support.  Youth can also utilize other sources of money, such as the Pell Grant, Educational and Training Voucher, other financial aid, and scholarships.  

Island Harbor staff will provide housing with a list of incoming students who will be participating in the SIL program prior to the young adult applying. Students participating in the SIL program will need to apply for housing through the same method as other students. Young adults should reach out to Island Harbor staff to obtain a code which will waive the housing application fee.

Per University requirements, first year students will need to apply to live at Miramar. After their first year, students will have the ability to move to Momentum, should they choose to. Students can feel free to apply for any floor plan they would like, however, it is important to note that not every option will be covered by the state’s stipend. Any cost beyond the amount paid by the state will be the responsibility of the student. In order for SIL funding to cover the entire cost of housing and still have money leftover for a meal plan, housing applications should have the following preferences:   

• Miramar
  • Residence Hall – Shared (1 bed/1 bath)
  • Residence Hall – Suite (2 bed/1 bath)
  • Apartments – Shared (1 bed/1 bath OR 4 bed/2 bath)
• Momentum
  • Apartment (4 bed/4 bath)
  • Townhome (4 bed/4.5 bath)

* All first-year students who are from outside of the Coastal Bend area will need to apply to live at Miramar.

Islander Housing includes cable, high speed internet, water, sewage, trash, electricity*, laundry and mail service.  Momentum Village does have an electricity cap, dependent upon the floor plan.  Should that apartment/townhome have an electricity bill above the cap for the month, the overage will be equally split between current roommates and be billed monthly.  Island Harbor students are responsible for any electricity overages that occur.  Miramar does not have this cap and residents are not subject to monthly electric bills. 

Island Harbor students must sign a standard resident lease, which DOES allow residents to remain on-campus over holiday breaks, including spring break, Thanksgiving, and winter break.  Students living in Miramar will need to sign an additional summer lease.  Summer is defined as the day after move-out at the end of the Spring semester through the move-in date at the start of the Fall semester.   Momentum Village leases run August 1 – July 31.  Students are able to change places once a lease is signed but must turn in a room transfer request and pay any applicable fees before choosing from available options.  The student must then notify Island Harbor staff and DFPS caseworker of the room change.

Should residents need to evacuate Islander Housing due to an emergency, such as a natural disaster/hurricane, TAMU-CC will provide evacuation instructions.  The University will evacuate residents who are unable to evacuate campus on their own at no cost to the resident.   

In the event of concern about a resident’s well-being, Housing may check on the room of that resident to see if he/she/they are home of if it appears he/she/they have been in the unit.  Housing staff may also speak with roommates and neighbors to see if they have seen the resident in question.  If Housing staff is unable to locate the resident or obtain any information regarding that persons’ whereabouts, Housing staff will notify UPD that they have reason to believe there is a missing student.  UPD will review the available information and attempt to contact the student and his/her/their emergency contacts.  If a student fails to check in and Island Harbor staff is unable to contact or locate the student, they will contact Housing for a wellness check.   

If a student is in violation of Housing rules (i.e. alcohol or drugs in housing) then they are in violation of the Student Code of Conduct.  These students are referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards.  The University Police Department may be called for the incident or allegations of illegal activity.  A Student Conduct Officer reviews all reports and, if deemed appropriate, will initiate the Student Conduct process. 

If it becomes necessary to evict a resident, the process as outlined in the Texas Property Code Title 4, Chapter 24 is followed.  The eviction process must follow very specific steps and the resident is provided information about each step in the process.  Students are most commonly evicted for failure to pay rent, violence or threats of violence in housing.  The latter is normally only decided by the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards, unless the resident poses an immediate threat of harm to others.   

Students can access more information about housing here: https://www.tamucc.edu/housing/

Island Harbor students discharging from the program should allow for sufficient time to prepare for discharge.  Ultimately, discharge occurs when the student successfully graduates with a degree from TAMU-CC.  Discharge can also occur if the student turns 21 prior to graduation.  In either case, the student should provide written documentation to their caseworker and Island Harbor staff at least 30 days prior to discharge.  Other situations where discharge is initiated are: 

• A youth requests a change in SIL providers 
• A youth completes their goals in SIL and Extended Foster Care and is ready to leave care for trial independence.   
• Refuses, or is unable to comply with eligibility requirements for Extended Foster Care and is ready to leave care for trial independence 
• Refuses to comply with TAMU-CC rules and regulations 
• Ends eligibility for Extended Foster Care 
• Demonstrates a need to be in a traditional Extended Foster Care placement that has more supervision because of issues such as maturity, behaviors, and safety.   

Discharge initiated by DFPS can occur if: 

• TAMU-CC is no longer in the student’s best interest  
• TAMU-CC is not meeting the student’s needs 

The caseworker must provide written notice to the student and TAMU-CC 30 days before the discharge date. 

The Island Harbor SIL placement at TAMU-CC will remain open for 14 days after DFPS receives notification of an unplanned discharge to allow the caseworker and the student to discuss the discharge, ensure that the student is secure, and certain of the decision to leave TAMU-CC.  If the student does not return to TAMU-CC in 14 days, the placement is closed.  The student’s caseworker is responsible for notifying the SIL coordinator. 

Within 90 days before the student’s planned date of discharge from TAMU-CC, the CPS caseworker will schedule a Transition Plan Review with the student and Island Harbor staff.  This will include, but is not limited to: 

• Housing 
• Job/Education 
• Contact Information for PAL staff 
• Contact information for Transition Centers 
• Review of PAL or other Transitional Living Services benefits 
• Aftercare Support 
• Plans while on a Trial Independence Period (if appropriate) 
• Current information about Star Health or STAR member health plan