After welcoming the largest freshman class since 2007 this fall with 497 students, Saint Mary’s College will open up more space for residence halls next fall in order to accommodate the increased demand for housing.
Juls White, director of residence life and community standards, has worked closely with administrators, the Board of Trustees and Facilities Operations to solve housing concerns. White explained that the College will use the second, third and fourth annexes of Le Mans Hall, the second floor of Regina Hall, the entirety of McCandless Hall, the fourth floor of Regina South Hall, and the first two floors of McCandless Hall in order to house the incoming freshman class.
In addition to reserving sections of some dorms for freshmen, White shared that campus has acquired new buildings from the Sisters of the Holy Cross. The Board of Trustees passed funding to purchase Lourdes Hall, Augusta Hall, Bertrand Hall and Bertrand Annex for use as residence halls, finalizing the purchase last week.
With 44 rooms available on the third and fourth floors, Lourdes Hall is expected to be available for senior and graduate students. “It’s predominantly singles, so there’s one triple and two doubles. The second floor is a very large lounge that will be a spot for people to hang out”, White said. “In the hot months there will be in-unit air conditioners, with laundry rooms and kitchens on each floor, a reflection room of some sort for those who hold faith.” All Saint Mary’s College single rooms require an additional single room fee of $1,106.
The addition of Lourdes Hall is not the only change that have been made to the housing options for the current and upcoming year. White noted that the College also converted some lounge spaces in Regina Hall into dorm rooms, as well as some unused rooms in Le Mans Hall.
Some students still have concerns about what housing and other campus resources could look like next year as increased enrollment continues to impact living conditions. Sophomore Isabella Cicak expressed concerns with how rising enrollment was squeezing housing options.
“My main concern is with admissions and the students they've been increasingly accepting, because last semester, there was a lot less selection and a lot more areas closed off and exclusive during the dorm selection process,” Cicak said.
Students have done their best to acclimate to the changed housing environment after returning from studying abroad. Making the adjustment back to her double, sophomore Eileen Mara said that her process for applying for a returning room was simple.
“To me, it functioned basically the same as selecting the room at the beginning of the year, but I also had communicated with a friend beforehand, and she was studying abroad in the spring, and so I took her place over so I'm sharing with her roommate from last semester,” Mara said.
The rise in interest and anticipation is felt across campus as both students and the residential life office look forward to the new spaces and traditions that Lourdes Hall and the other new residence spaces will bring to campus. The Residence Life office plans to hold preview dorm walk throughs open to all students on Feb. 27 and March 2.
