Although immediate changes seem unlikely, the days of off-campus housing for Wesleyan students are numbered.
For now, the system of granting off-campus status remains the same, according to Assistant Director of Residential Life Rich DeCapua. However, he asserted that changes to the University’s housing options over the next few years will eliminate the need for off-campus housing.
Currently, the number of students allotted off-campus status is determined each year by a calculation that takes into account the University’s housing capacity, current enrollment, and projected enrollment for the incoming first-year class. Due to these factors, a record 200 students have been granted permission to live off-campus for the 2004-2005 school year, DeCapua said.
Off-campus status is granted by class year. Seniors have first priority in this process, followed by juniors and then sophomores. Students who miss the deadline to apply for off-campus status or who have bad luck in the housing lottery can be placed on a waitlist for off-campus places.
“It’s all a numbers game,” DeCapua said. “The only thing that has changed for next year is the number of [off-campus] spots.”
The University grants off-campus status because there are not enough on-campus rooms to accommodate all of Wesleyan’s students. Once the new residential halls are built, however, administrators project that the University will be able to adequately house all of its students.
“One of the unique things about Wesleyan is that we have a residential community,” DeCapua said. “The ideal would be to get rid of off-campus housing entirely.”
Director of University Communications Justin Harmon explained that minimizing off-campus housing will help to create a more centralized campus as distinct from the neighborhoods that surround it.
“We need to better develop [and] define the edges of campus vis-à-vis the residential areas,” he said.
According to Harmon, the new Fauver Field housing, which will replace In-town, will help to achieve this goal. For its purposes, Harmon said that In-town is not a viable neighborhood for students due in part to its location. This decision came about after extensive discussion among administrators, students and neighbors.
“[Once built, the Fauver Field housing] will create a better articulated edge between town and gown,” he said.
Some students expressed concern about the University’s plan to get rid of the off-campus housing option.
“Living off-campus is a great way for students to save money, live in a nice place and avoid the stress of the housing lottery,” said Jessica Weidmann ’05, who will live at an off-campus house in the fall. “It will definitely be cheaper to live off-campus next year, as long as we can find summer sub-letters.”
DeCapua acknowledged that students may choose to live off-campus because of financial concerns, but said that those students were trading savings for responsibility.
According to DeCapua, the higher cost of living in University-owned housing is offset by its benefits.
“In off-campus housing, you’re really on your own,” DeCapua said. “That’s your game. You have to deal with your landlord and your lease. But on-campus there are amenities: you can put in a work order to get a light bulb fixed, and Public Safety will patrol your area.”
Off-campus fraternities and other student organizations will also need to reconsider their status once off-campus housing ceases being a possibility for students.
“Fraternities, as a practical manner, will have to be a part of program housing if they want to be housing students,” Harmon said.
According to DeCapua, the University projects that the two Fauver Field residential halls—one of which will house first-years and the other upperclassmen—will open in time for the 2005-2006 school year. At that point, he said, off-campus housing status will no longer be available for most students. The Office of Residential Life will continue to make exceptions in this policy for students with “special considerations,” such as medical concerns.
“Our main priority is to house students,” said DeCapua, “but any time we can house students on campus, we will.”
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