It is gratifying to see that the newest class of Dartmouth students seems to be settling in to the rhythms of campus life with ease. There are, of course, the usual shmobs milling about in search of food, classes and the route back to their dorms (in that order), but as a whole it seems that our newest community members are quickly making it their home. However, the housing crisis caused by the sheer size of this year’s freshman class — the largest ever — is the perfect opportunity for students to demand better and more plentiful housing options.
While living learning communities demonstrate the College’s commitment to providing spaces for students with specialized interests, the broader issue of housing quality remains on the back burner. Continuing to use the River and Choates clusters for first-year housing while other freshmen land swanky McLaughlin or Fahey-McLane rooms creates a tremendous gap in freshman housing quality. Meanwhile, upperclassmen — particularly sophomores — often struggle to find satisfactory housing because of poor room numbers. This situation is untenable, especially when one considers Dartmouth relative to its peers (such as Yale University and Rice University), which tend to boast not only stronger residential communities but also an overall higher quality of housing.
Building more dorms is a no-brainer. Giving students better quality housing where they can build stronger communities in their residence halls benefits student life. First, more vibrant residential life will decrease Dartmouth’s reliance on the Greek system for social outlets while increasing opportunities for students to build the communities they want for themselves. Second, various studies (such as a 2006 report by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions) show strong links between quality of housing and quality of life. The same principle applies for students; returning to a dank and bug-filled room at the end of the day is not conducive to a happy or healthy environment. Improving dorms may help students feel better-equipped to tackle the challenges of college life, like late-night study sessions or interminable thesis papers. Third, improving the quality of freshman housing in particular may help curb high-risk behaviors by creating alternative environments more conducive to social activities in clusters.
Last November, College President Phil Hanlon stated his desire to increase continuity in the residence halls. The aforementioned living learning communities reflect the administration’s dedication to this goal; however, in order to achieve it, the College will necessarily have to create more new buildings for these interest- or affinity-specific spaces as demand for such spaces increases.
Building new dorms would undoubtedly be a costly investment. However, the College is more than willing to spend an undisclosed amount of money on other, much less necessary construction projects (like the window upgrade in the Hopkins Center), so it seems that there is money to spare on projects it deems fit. The money spent on the new windows could have been diverted to building new dorms, or at least enhancing the current residence halls.
Even without immediately investing in new dorm buildings, the College could significantly improve the currently subpar quality of dormitory life with some minor changes. Some small fixes could go a long way toward making even the least desirable buildings more pleasant to live in: remodeling existing buildings, adding air conditioning units to dorms that are open during sophomore summer, replacing single-pane windows with double-pane ones that keep heat in the buildings more effectively and adding built-in light fixtures in older and inadequately lit rooms.
Giving students the best possible college experience is about more than finding the best professors to teach their courses. Providing an environment that lets students live happy, healthy, safe and productive lives should be a college’s highest priority. Putting students in drafty, subpar dorms on the edges of campus does not fulfill that purpose. If the College is serious about improving Dartmouth, then upgrading housing options should be at the top of its priority list.
