As students, there are many things we have to deal with. Some primarily face the battle of getting work submitted on time, while others adapt to lifestyle changes the most and must bear the harsh reality of becoming an adult. However, one issue that all of us are familiar with is whether it is better to be a resident or a commuter. The University has obviously made that decision for us by choosing to build a new dorm in Parking Lot Six near the library.
Current residents may not care about this, but it does affect all of us. After all, who among us doesn’t at least have a friend who has said, “I’m late to class because I can’t park!” Beginning this spring, we’ll have 200 less parking spaces. In return, the University promises to have more bedrooms some time during 2014.
Several editors pointed out that it might be a very serious problem for students looking to use the library late at night. If library parking is deferred to the Woods Theater lot, then, if students are at the library late at night, it could be a daunting experience to walk that distance at that hour.
Moreover, this could cause serious overcrowding of the Woods Theater lot during the day, meaning students who have class in there may have to park far away and race across the entire campus.
In addition to Lot Six being one of the few commuter lots on the north end of campus, students have been complaining almost non-stop throughout the entire semester about a lack of parking during certain times. Despite the valet parking service, many students find themselves consistently running late, due to the inability to find places to park. One editor points out that if it weren’t for being an honors student and thus having the ability to park in the honors lot, he might have needed to rearrange his schedule.
The Outlook can only imagine how people will feel when another 200 spots are taken away for a dorm that nearly half of the student body may never see finished.
Budgetary constraints notwithstanding, it might make more sense to build additional facilities, or at least plan to. If students plan to live off-campus anyway, funds would be better spent on additional academic buildings or student facilities- i.e. all of the psychological counseling and health services could be consolidated into one building, opening up additional spots for clubs and such in the Student Center.
Also, many buildings are used for several departments; foreign languages, natural/social sciences and technological majors are a few examples of programs that would certainly benefit from their own facilities.
Pretty much everyone is aware of the Art building that was recently built on campus. Not only is the department, and all of its students, rejoicing in its completion, but the mere fact of having separate, specialized facilities will create greater educational benefits. Having a space dedicated to students of a specific discipline allows the University to celebrate them and bolster a more complete learning process.
There is no doubt that art majors will profit from being able to work in greater space and within designated, specialized areas. This same principle applies to all students of all educational disciplines. One editor who used to live on campus said an additional dorm would be completely unnecessary. Since students rarely get turned down for housing and, at times, there are empty beds, there is no reason to assume there would be enough students living at the University to warrant the dorm.
Living off campus is cheaper and should sophomores realize that, there is little reason for them to stay on campus.
Conversely, one editor at The Outlook doesn’t believe the dorm is a bad idea. By enticing more students to live on campus, the University is attempting to avoid its suitcase school image. However, the editor agrees that the placement is poor, and that the University should consider investing funds elsewhere before looking to have more residents.
While it is understandable to want more students living on campus, there are many aspects of the University, such as Howard Hall, that could use improvements first. Though a new dorm wouldn’t be the end of the world, The Outlook feels that, should the University go through with it, there should be greater consideration given to its placement prior to the beginning of construction.
Correction:
Last week, in a story headlined “Hawks Fly Together in Hurricane Relief Efforts”, The Outlook reported that the relief fund had collected $700, which is what the paper was told on the record by a staff member from Student Activities. After the story was published, the paper became aware that the actual amount collected to date was $9,074.46. If, for any reason, this inaccuracy has caused misunderstanding or problems, The Outlook regrets that.
