Housing Department addresses challenges of large class

The task of accommodating the massive freshman class forced the University of Richmond Housing Department to alter its plans for this semester and, potentially, for the future.

Although it's still unclear how many students will require on-campus housing during the spring semester, the Housing Department has already been forced to alter its plans for this semester, despite not having to house the record number of students currently studying abroad.

There are 314 undergraduate students abroad this fall semester, said Michele Cox, director of study abroad programs.

Although it cannot be predicted how many students will study abroad during the spring 2010 semester, 248 students studied abroad last fall — compared with only 58 students during the spring — and 18 students remained abroad all year, Cox said. Historically, since the 2000-01 school year, more students have studied abroad during the fall semester than during the spring semester.

Because more women than men are currently abroad — 202 women and 112 men — the situation is not as dire for Richmond College students, said Carolyn Bigler, assistant director of undergraduate student housing.

The fact that the first-year class is composed of 59 percent women and 41 percent men compounds the potential problem for Westhampton College, according to admissions statistics provided by Nanci Tessier, vice president for student enrollment.

It will be difficult to project what will happen during the spring, when more than 300 students return to Richmond, said Joan Lachowski, director of undergraduate student housing. Some students will be going abroad spring semester, some will have graduated before spring semester begins and some exchange students will have left Richmond.

In addition to these possibilities, there is also the likelihood that not all students will choose to live on campus. Of all undergraduate students at Richmond, 9 percent live off campus, according to statistics provided by the College Board.

Students who return from abroad are not guaranteed housing, but Lachowski said she had never turned anyone away.

"The Housing Department will always do everything in its power to accommodate students returning from study abroad, because we realize how important it is to them," she said. "As long as it's within our power, we'll do something for you."

Although the full effect of the first year class may not yet be fully realized, the Housing Department has already changed its plans for the fall semester. Before the size of the class of 2013 was revealed, the department had planned to close Jeter Hall for renovations during the fall semester, Lachowski said. Because of the size of the incoming freshman class, the Housing Department moved 56 upperclass women — originally assigned to live in Robins Hall — to Jeter, so that Robins could be used exclusively for freshmen.

Lachowski said that housing had wanted the freshman class to remain entirely together, because it is important to establish a community during the first year of college.

No Westhampton College student that moved from Robins to Jeter complained to the Housing Department about the move, and students were grateful that the process was organized, Bigler said. The women were cooperative and appreciated the time and effort put into the process, she said.

One such student, sophomore Sadia Gado Alzouma, said that she had originally felt upset because she had to give up her room in Robins, which had a sink and toilet. But upon realizing that her room in Jeter was bigger, and that she would be able to keep the same roommate, she had no problem with switching dorms.

Jeter now primarily houses upperclass women and a small number of freshmen who live in the same section of the building, Lachowski said. Lora Robins Hall and Moore Hall also house freshmen women, while Dennis Hall, Marsh Hall and Wood Hall house freshmen men, she said.

Should more rooms be needed in the future, the Housing Department can arrange to have lounges converted into rooms simply by adding beds and dressers, she said. The possible use of lounges as rooms is not unprecedented, as students had been housed in lounges regularly until four years ago.

Apartments and rooms in Gray Court can also be used for either gender, which provides flexibility for the Housing Department in the spring. Still, the problem of accommodating students could likely last for as long as the class of 2013 is on campus, not just this year, Lachowski said.

Contact staff writer Jimmy Young at jimmy.young@richmond.edu