To the Editor:
In Tuesday's edition of The Dartmouth, a story read, "For the first time ever, this fall seniors will have the option of selecting off-campus housing owned by the College through the Office of Residential Life"
The Foley House, located on the corner of Maple and West Street has been a College owned, off-campus residence for over 20 years. Your oversight of Foley's existence indicates the need for both more of this kind of housing and also increased student effort to explore all residential options.
Foley House is a co-ed co-operative living house. The residents take turns cooking dinner five nights a week, doing dishes, taking out the trash, and other chores like feeding the fish. It has a real living room, two porches, a family room, and beds for ten.
Living in Foley has allowed me the sanity I need at school by surrounding me with a less artificial space (e.g. East Wheelock), and an opportunity to spend time living intimately with other students in a context of our own choosing.
Hopefully the College will do more to encourage students to live off campus than just provide housing. Off-campus houses are great for those who like to cook, but the College still requires students to purchase a meal plan; there is a discouraging $100 service charge for the off-campus plan.
Foley House is located on 20 West Street. If you've never been there and want to see what the College does have tucked away off-campus, then come visit. Blitz me and I'll invite you to dinner. It's a completely different way to live at Dartmouth and we need more houses like it.
