Move-out deadline extended by 5 hours

Students can take a little longer to clean out their rooms after finals next month.

The move-out deadline for undergraduates living in on-campus housing has been extended five hours until 5 p.m. on May 13. Graduating seniors and students who receive housing extensions from Housing and Conference Services will be allowed to remain past the deadline.

"We wanted to give students at least 24 hours turnaround time and by extending it to 5 PM that covered [approximately 98 percent] of students," said Business Services spokeswoman Barbara Lea-Kruger in an e-mail.

The change, announced by HCS in an e-mail to students last week, was made in consultation with the Residential Advisory Board and the Undergraduate Assembly.

"Given the constraints of other things going on that weekend, five hours is a fantastic amount and students don't have to start moving out right after their exams at eight," said RAB chairwoman and College sophomore Carly Levitz.

Last year, students in the College Houses and Sansom Place were required to turn in their keys by noon of the day following the last day of final exams. This sparked complaints from some students - many through a Facebook group - who felt the short deadline cut into their study time, especially those with evening exams the night before.

"This was something we were very passionate about last semester," said UA member and College sophomore Grant Dubler, who along with fellow UA member and College sophomore Alec Webley spearheaded the UA's efforts. "Students should not have to choose between studying and packing," said Dubler.

He added that last year, he had to ship packages at 8 a.m. Wed. morning two hours before his flight because he had been studying and did not have time to properly pack.

Initially, the attempt to prolong the deadline grew out of a 700-student UA survey last spring that revealed many students were dissatisfied with the short move-out time span.

After unsuccessfully lobbying the Office of the Registrar and the Office of the Provost to shift exam times, the UA and RAB approached HCS to lengthen the deadline, according to Dubler.

However, some students feel the extra five hours still do not provide enough time and would like to see the deadline further postponed to the next day.

"Frankly, we wanted more and will continue to push for more," said Dubler.

He cited HCS's rationale as cost related - that it would be too expensive to keep college houses open another day.

"This extension provides relief to residents with late week exams and their parents and still respects the needs of the campus activity that takes place after undergraduates leave campus," wrote Lea-Kruger.

HCS encourages students seeking an extension to either send an e-mail detailing any extenuating circumstances or to apply as a volunteer for the move-out process, in exchange for a free housing extension.

"We're very hopeful that this change will address at least some of the concerns we heard last year," Grant and Webley said in a release. "Extensions of the move-out deadline require a lot of logistical changes and resources, and given everyone's tight budgets we're really grateful that this could be put in place for this year."

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.