Steamy Senate Meeting Introduces New Housing Plan
By Elsie Aleck ‘24
Additional Reporting by Akina Nanayakkara ‘25
February 14th, 2022 at 8:00 pm. Valentine’s Day.
While some were cuddling up with their significant others, many Sarah Lawrence students logged onto a Zoom meeting with Danny Trujillo, the Dean of Studies and Student Life, for an Undergraduate Student Senate meeting. The meeting’s primary order of business was 2022-23 housing plans, whose large-scale changes sparked concern among students. The official summary of the most relevant changes are as follows:
Students who will be housed first:
Students with an approved, documented need for a housing accommodation
Students with high demonstrated financial need
Students who were assigned to a hotel during the Fall 2021 semester
Fall 2022 first-year and transfer students
Residences around North Lawn will be designated for first-year students (who will still be required to live on-campus)
Placement order will be determined by order of housing application submission (not by class year)
Danny expressed that this plan “is considered the most fair and equitable way to approach housing going forward,” claiming “it grants priority based on clearly demonstrated need and prior commitment.” Since fewer upperclassmen have been studying abroad due to COVID, more students have been staying on campus than in previous years. These housing changes hope to ensure that no students end up in hotels again.
If student demand exceeds available housing, there will be a waitlist, and the school will not cover the cost of commuting if students are not provided with housing.
In the Zoom, concern flooded the chat.
The North Lawn’s housing is mostly singles, while Hill House is mostly doubles and triples. A common worry was that first-years will feel isolated in singles (using as proof the 2020-2021 academic year, which for its majority housed first-years in singles and resulted in a wide-spread lack of community). Furthermore, it was argued that the quiet space singles provide are more important for upperclassmen.
Many upperclassmen feel that they are being pushed off-campus by these new housing changes in order to allow for more first-years and transfers to attend. Danny denied that this was the case.
2022-23 housing applications have officially opened for the duration of March, and April will bring the highly anticipated room selections. With the housing changes implemented, time will tell their ultimate effectiveness and overall student reception. For the present, however, many hearts are sinking.