Housing Issues Without Tissues

October 5, 2008

If you do not send in your housing preferences including dorm and roommate information by November 1st of this year, you might not get a room next year. Despite that being absolutely not true, there have been recent worries about whether or not CMC will have enough available housing for not only next semester, but next year as well. Here is the official position of the Residential Life Administration: Don't worry, be happy.

I recently spoke with Ethan Andyshak, Director of Residential Life about the housing crunch. During the interview, he assured that there would be enough room next semester and next year for all current CMC students. Because of the skewed number of students studying abroad in the Fall semester compared with the Spring semester, many have been worried that returning SA students would be without housing. However, Andyshak made very clear that "the priority is getting all students returning from study abroad a place on campus." Basically, if you're abroad, have no fears that after you get kicked out of a foreign country Elian Gonzales style, your sweet CMC Motherland will disown you as well. If you're abroad, you will have a place and a sweet embrace of CMC housing all over your face. Enough word-play, here are some facts about housing for the upcoming semester/year:

• The Scripps girls who live in Phillips Hall will be returning to Scripps next semester. This opens up 15 previously unavailable rooms. While the excess of rooms is good news for returning SA students, its also very, very bad news because it means that upperclassmen might have to live in Phillips. As a former Phillipian last year, I truly sympathize. By Sunday morning, the showers are nearly blocked off by the insurmountable garbage spilling onto the sticky, filthy, throw-uppy floors of the bathroom. Not that you would want to enter the bathroom after the weekend anyway...Yeesh.

• Ethan Andyshak is a creative man. This comes in handy, especially when the administration tells you to find ways to house more students than the dorms can hold, as is what happened last year. Last year doubles were made into triples, triples into quads, and even dorm lounges into quads in order to create living space for students. This scenario could be repeated. In the case of another housing crunch Andyshak said that, "we are definitely keeping that option open."

• Current students will not be forced to look for off-campus housing. As previously stated, Residential Life prioritizes and guarantees housing for returning SA students. The second priority is for all current CMC students. Andyshak also stated that current students would also not be forced to look for housing off-campus; using the creative thinking mentioned above Residential Life will make it possible for everyone already living here, to stay here. I've been told that the water polo locker room is a great place to live...

• Incoming transfer students may have to live off-campus. Because housing for transfer students isn't accounted for at the beginning of the year and also because it could be a challenge to find space for current students already, Andyshak said that transfer students get lowest priority for housing. While the search for on-campus living will be exhausted before resulting to other measures, it is conceivable that transfers will be asked to live off-campus out of necessity and lack of available space. Yes, this sucks for incoming transfer students but let's face it, its probably your fault for not applying here in the first place.

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For sure. And to start off this week, take a break from studying for midterms or writing that 15 pager and check out this music video. I thought it was pretty cool.

"The Compromise" by The Format