A recent blow from University Housing has left hundreds of UM students reeling and uncertain about their future living conditions. A new housing policy will force upperclassmen out of traditional dorms and into the oftdreaded world of offcampus housing, because of the unexpected surge in freshman enrollment during the past seven years. Due to what has been termed as an inability to predict the number of accepted students who will enroll in the University, University Housing is pushing its oncehelddeartoheart sophomores and juniors (at one time recruited to reapply to the dorms) out the door to squeeze in a multitude of confused and puffyjacketed freshmen.
Most of us, it is true, hated dorm life. The same ridiculous philosophy that mandates the use of the term "residence hall" instead of "dorm" resulted (at least for those of us in South Quad) in many noisy nights of shouting in the halls, loud music, answering machines turned up fullblast, and about two dozen fire alarms (only one of which was legitimate). The gripes are numerous: overpriced food, uncomfortable surroundings, and so on.
Yet, there is something tragic and unjust about the whole affair, not only for the some 400600 sophomores and juniors who will be forced to look for offcampus housing, but also for the student community at large, which will be competing for affordable offcampus housing along with this new influx of exdormers. It is inevitable that a higher demand for housing around Ann Arbor will give landlords an opportunity to raise rents (again) we can see them licking their chops, and it isn't a pretty sight. Offcampus housing will also force some exdormers, who desired the privacy of singleliving that University housing had provided, to find apartment or house mates, a timeconsuming and often very difficult endeavor. The new housing policies will also affect a large number of upperclass women: those who would have resided in allfemale dorms. Forsaking the security and traditional standards of allfemale dorms might cause problems for some women whose concerns about their safety and values will be undermined by the apparent thoughtlessness of the University.
Granted, freshmen also have it rough as they learn the ropes at the University and settle into their new college lives. They need a place like a dorm to touch base, where they don't have to worry about preparing food, cleaning their bathrooms, or sending out electric bills. But there are many sophomores, juniors, and seniors who require these same luxuries, too, as they face imminent graduate school exams and applications, theses, job hunts, excess extracurricular activities (to plump up those resumes) and other stresses of University life. Who is to decide which group has more validity in living in the dorms: the group figuring out where Tisch Hall and the Nectarine are, or the group racing to fill out law school applications?
Obviously, the University has decided already, after having supposedly weighed all its options. Oddly enough, the University is not planning on building a new dormitory. Or rather, true to form, the University has poohpoohed any rational choice to build a new building for all the freshmen whom they are letting into the school. Even with a freshlysqueezed amount of money from the Campaign for Michigan, the University is unwilling to ease the housing burden of a good number of its students.
In essence, however, what we want isn't another dorm. It's fewer students. The influx of new freshman is not just affecting the number of residents in the dorms and competition for offcampus housing, but also the wait at the overcrowded computing sites, the lines at Bruegger's, the number of football and hockey tickets, and the size of classes. It isn't simply a nuisance for the older people who have come to expect certain things from the University. The new, incoming students are going to be affected as well. The college experience of the typical freshman will be hampered by overcrowded intro classes and, importantly, by a sea of equally clueless faces that roam his or her dorm. According to many, the dorm is the prime place to make friends and connections. Yet, by removing the older population from the dorms, freshman will be missing out on the opportunity to befriend and learn from upperclassmen. Dorms will become noisy buildings pulsating with the sounds of the Spice Girls and WuTang, lacking the usually quiet and serious studiousness of juniors and seniors that would be a positive influence on partywild freshmen.
The University should seriously reconsider their housing and admissions policies in the near future. The drastic and unfortunate changes that they are currently enacting will have longlasting effects on the entire University population. By limiting the number of students granted admittance, and remembering that campus housing is not just for the new kids, the University will be able to provide quality education and housing for all of its students: old and new, on and offcampus. MR