It cannot be ignored that there are many benefits that come to students who live on campus. There is a sense of close community and a good support system in the residence halls for not only a student’s education, but their new personal life away from home as well.
It’s actually been proven that students who live on campus are more likely to stay in college and graduate within six years. However, not every student can afford to live in the residence halls at the University of Oregon.
Along with opening a new residence hall east of Global Scholars Hall, the UO is requiring freshman students arriving in Fall 2017 to live on campus their first year. With this policy many students will unable to attend the University because of the cost it will take them to live here.
The University wants to ensure that all students have the utmost opportunity to succeed and graduate. But should the University solely be the one to decide what is best for all students? We as students should have the right to decide, especially since each individual is going to have different circumstances, which environment we would thrive in academically.
The primary focus for requiring on-campus residence is for students just coming out of high school who, for the first time in their lives, have to be self-reliant.
“Living on campus provides an enormous amount of support during that transition,” said Michael Griffel PhD, Director of University Housing.
While living in the residence halls a student has extra resources such as study rooms, resident assistants, easily accessible dining halls and the close proximity of classrooms. On top of that, the entire housing department is dedicated to being available to assist all students in any way that they can.
“We care about students very deeply and want to ensure that they know that they matter to us,” said Anna Schmidt-MacKenzie, Director of Residence Life and Educational Initiatives.
However, I have yet to see solid evidence that students were ever consulted about the matter. Wouldn’t we, the students, know firsthand what it means to live on and off campus? Freshman ASUO Senator Keegan Williams-Thomas lives off campus and believes that students should be more involved in the changes.
“There’s been a real lack of student input and we need to ensure that students are given a choice and not just told that a certain policy will best serve them,” Williams-Thomas said. “There needs to be more correspondence between housing and students.”
After all, our opinions could be useful; we did decide one way or another where we would live when we were freshman. Of course, the University made the decision to change policies – not the Housing Department alone.
As a public university in Oregon, we are getting into this particular policy’s game fairly late. Southern Oregon University, Western Oregon University, Eastern Oregon University and Oregon State University all have requirements for freshmen students to live on campus, but it also costs considerably less to live in residence halls at those universities.
The cost for a standard double room and standard meal plan at the UO is $11,430. The closest to us is Oregon State, which costs $10,650. Southern Oregon’s prices are in the lead costing only $4,035.
“We’re working incredibly hard to come up with price points that vary enough for students to afford.” Schmidt-MacKenzie said about the University’s pricing.
Though their efforts should not go unnoticed, is it still justifiable to require residence when prices are still not where the University wants them to be? Williams-Thomas doesn’t believe so, and neither do I.
“I’m sure the housing department doesn’t try to have high prices on purpose, I don’t think that’s their goal,” said Williams-Thomas. “I’m sure that they do their best to keep the prices low, but until there are results I don’t think that students should be required to live on campus.”
Students should reserve the right to claim for themselves where they would best succeed academically. It isn’t as though students who live off campus are at a disadvantage. Students are still able to access many resources without having to live on campus while also living in a community that further establishes the responsibility of being self-reliant.
There are students living off campus who came to the UO relying on the choice to live off campus. If students are denied that capability, the University will be shutting out the diverse group of students it wants.