More students choose to live on campus

Next year, 5.1 percent more upperclassmen will live on-campus. If numbers are any indication, the college house system is an early success -- at least according to housing officials. Compared with recent years, more upperclassmen have chosen to live in campus dormitories this fall, an increase administrators link to the plan to reorganize residences into 12 multi-year houses with added staff and academic support. But many students claim they based their housing decisions on convenience, not the residential changes. According to Associate Vice President for Campus Services Larry Moneta, 2,889 students have signed room contracts, up 5.1 percent from the 2,750 students who signed contracts last year. At this time last year, housing officials told the The Daily Pennsylvanian that 2,876 students had applied for rooms. Moneta said he was not sure why the tallies were different. In 1996-97, 2,752 students applied to live on campus, while in 1995-96, 2,836 students did. The residences for next year, so far, have a 55 percent occupancy, whereas last year they were 51 percent full at this time, according to Moneta. "Add to that the transfer [students] and [incoming first-year students] and we're at full occupancy," Moneta said. He added there are 2,370 vacancies in the system right now, while the average freshman class has 2,350 people. There are about 200 students on a waiting list for rooms at this time, Moneta said. He explained that in the high rises there are fewer rooms available for next year than in the past because many rooms are being reserved for incoming first-year students and for staff housing. Moneta said that although there are currently smaller occupancy rates for this fall's high rises than in past years, a comparison would be "inaccurate." Apart from the dozens of apartments being reserved for freshmen and faculty members, a number of current students who would have applied to live in the high rises as upperclassmen in past years are choosing to move into traditionally first-year residences -- such as the Quadrangle and Hill House -- rather than the high rises this fall. Moneta said the overall rise in occupancy numbers could be attributed to some of the marketing initiatives conducted by housing officials or to the renovation of certain residences. But mostly, he credited the new college house system, saying the correlation between the high figures and the plan "just jumps right out." "Overall, it's a very positive sign that the college house system has in fact supported upperclass student interest in remaining in residences," Moneta said. Moneta admitted that the rise in numbers was a surprise for him, since he had expected the numbers to "stay flat." "I expected as many people who were attracted to the house system to be nervous about it," he said. "In reality, I'm delighted that more students have selected to see the college house opportunity as something more advantageous for them." At the same time, however, many students said that they based their housing decisions for next year on convenience, not on the new residential plan. "I personally can't live without the Ethernet connected to my computer," Wharton junior Catherine Chan said. She added that she and her friends did not consider the new college house plan when deciding to sign up for rooms in High Rise East. "We figured it's not going to be that big a deal for us," she said. "It did not figure into our decision." College junior Serena Yang is also moving into HRE this fall. More specifically, she's chosen to live in the new Ancient Studies/University Museum residential program on the building's 14th floor. "I would still have chosen to live in the high rises if there was no program," Yang said. "It's more convenient." Anthony Gill, a College freshman, said the college house system is not a draw for people to move into dormitories this year, but it could become one in the future. "If it works the way the administration thinks it will -- if the houses really develop their own personality and own character -- then I think it could be a really great thing," Gill said. College freshman Heather Roberts, who currently lives in King's Court/English House and will be moving into High Rise North in the fall, said she doesn't look forward to seeing mixed-year housing for freshmen. "I think it's kind of stupid, because I like the idea of having all the freshmen together," Roberts said. "It was much more comforting to know you're with a bunch of people who also have no clue. I wouldn't want to live my first year in a building with juniors and seniors." Students living in the high rises this fall will note a change in the layout of some of the rooms on their floor. The corner, 3-bedroom apartment -- with the suffix "07" -- on each floor will be adjoined to part of the one-bedroom apartment next door to make a 4-bedroom suite. The one-bedroom apartment will become a one-room efficiency -- a large bedroom with a kitchen in it -- to be occupied by a graduate associate. Moneta said the new room configuration is receiving "lots of very positive response." "Our students really like large community options," he said. "If we had 10-bedroom suites, we could fill them all."

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