Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth

Here's what families often want to know about our residential sites: 

Residential room assignments and roommate requests
We assign students to housing with the goal of creating positive hall communities where students are of approximately the same age and where they have hallmates who share their academic interests.

In general, students are housed with same-gender students of similar age who are also in their class section. One or more class sections may be represented in an RA group. Students in courses for 5th and 6th grades have a different schedule from older students and therefore are housed separately from students in courses for 7th grade or above.

In assigning students to rooms and RA groups, we works first to minimize the range of ages among the group. Class section is considered next. A double room is the most common, but students may be assigned to singles or triples. We cannot guarantee that all students will have a roommate, nor the number of roommates they may have. In addition, because of varying demographics in each class section, we cannot guarantee that all students will be housed with classmates.

You can make a roommate request, though we do discourage it. We find that students benefit from the opportunity to make new friends. Parents/guardians of both students must send a roommate request in writing before we can forward the request to the site’s residential administrators. We consider roommate requests but cannot guarantee a roommate to any student.

We house students based on the gender that is of record in our student information system, unless otherwise requested by a parent in writing.

Changes to housing assignments are made only in extenuating circumstances. Families are informed of any post-check-in changes to a student’s housing assignment.

Air conditioning 
Many of the classrooms CTY uses on site are air-conditioned and, to a lesser extent, so are the dorm rooms. For questions about air conditioning at a specific site, please contact ctyinfo@jhu.edu or 410-735-6277.

Weekend activities
In addition to their engaging classes, all residential students participate in scheduled activities and enjoy a vibrant social atmosphere. Residential students participate in afternoon and evening activities, and spend their weekends on campus participating in socials, talent shows, movies, sports, carnival days, and/or water days. Weekends also include time when students can rest, do laundry, bond with others on their residence hall, and/or attend religious services.

Religious services 
We welcome students of all religious beliefs, and provide opportunities for interested students at all summer sites to attend worship services on or off campus. CTY staff escort students to services and provide supervision. However, we cannot always guarantee that a specific type of service will be available at or near a given site. 

Bringing an instrument, sports equipment, etc. to a summer site
While we have basic athletic equipment at the site, your child might want to bring their own tennis rackets, lacrosse sticks, baseball gloves, etc. No bicycles, skateboards, in-line skates, free weights, strength/cardio machines, or roller skates are permitted. Students are permitted to bring musical instruments, but they are responsible for the safe storage of their musical instruments and equipment.

Students are responsible for the safe-keeping of their personal belongings. We urge students to label all their belongings with their first and last names and “JHU-CTY.” Neither CTY nor our hosts can be responsible for theft or other losses of, or damages to, students’ personal belongings, including athletic equipment, musical instruments, or computers. When considering whether to bring an expensive item, families may wish to investigate possible coverage under their own homeowner’s or renter’s insurance. In general, we recommend that students bring valuable items only when they can keep a close eye on them. While our staff will remind students to keep their doors locked and their belongings stored securely, CTY is not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged items students bring with them.

Taking your child offsite on weekends or after class
While we discourage visits, you are certainly allowed to sign your child out on weekends and when classes are not meeting. We recommend that you contact the site office in advance, both so you can be made aware of the upcoming schedule of events and so we can have your child ready to meet you in the office to be signed out. We only allow legal guardians and adults listed on the Authorization to Visit/Sign Off Campus form to take students offsite. All visitors are required to show photo ID when signing out a student.

Communicating with your child’s instructor and resident assistant or program assistant after the program begins
Instructional and residential staff are extremely busy during their time at CTY between supervising students and preparing for class and activities. Because of this, parents communicate directly with the administrative staff on site about any concerns or questions. On opening and closing days, parents may meet with students’ instructors, instructional assistants, and resident assistants.

If, before the program has begun, there are extenuating circumstances for which you feel more direct communication with the student’s instructor, instructional assistant, and/or RA is needed, this should be discussed with the site program manager, whose contact information is listed in the site information packet,  after your child has enrolled in a summer course. 

If this is related to a learning, medical, physical, or other disability, please review the process for requesting accommodations for CTY testing and courses. If direct communication is needed during the program, contact site administrators with your request. Contact information for the site’s main office will be included in the student site information packet.

Prohibited items
The following items must not be brought to any sites:

• Weapons of any kind (including pocket knives and martial arts devices)
• E-cigarettes, vape pens or other electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS)
• Tobacco, alcohol, or drugs that are illegal or not prescribed to the student
• Tobacco, drug- or alcohol-related paraphernalia
• Any flame-producing device (including matches, lighters, and firecrackers)
• Energy drinks, such as Red Bull, Monster, and Amp
• Pets of any kind
• Televisions or video game equipment
• Bicycles, skateboards, roller blades, skates, scooters, or shoes with wheels
• Free weights or strength/cardio machines
• Water guns
• Halogen lamps, refrigerators, or cooking devices
• Staff lanyards from current or previous summers

In addition to the above list, we reserve the right to prohibit or confiscate any items that, in our judgment, demonstrate the potential for distracting students from the goals of the program, pose undue risk to the safety or well-being of people, or pose undue risk to property.