On-Campus Housing Offers Students Great Options

JOSEPHINE WRAY ’21
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
On college and university campuses across the country, the topic of on-campus housing is one of frequent discussion- even for us here at Trinity. Traditionally, schools only require first-years to live on campus, offering different options to upperclassmen.
Some schools offer suitestyle living with accompanying bathrooms and common areas for first-years, while others require everyone to live in a standard one room double with another member of their class. First-years at Trinity have options within the seven available dorms, yet complaints remain and are frequent. From bathroom uncleanliness to inconsistent room temperatures, ugly tile colors to bug problems, it seems like no one is happy with their spaces. Where does this line of complaint need to be drawn?
As is standard of many first-year dormitories at other colleges and universities, Trinity freshmen are equipped with basic furniture, in-building laundry systems, and well-functioning bathrooms, with some sort of option for food being no more than a short walk away. Having attended boarding school for my four high school years, I find my single in Jones to be nothing less than expected – not at all fancy, but nothing close to unmanageable, either. Many freshmen are opposed to their new living arrangements, perhaps because they contrast with how they were living at home prior to starting college. Within these conversations, it is extremely important for us to remember the fact that we have a hard-working facilities and maintenance staff whose job it is to keep us safe and our shared areas clean. It is an understatement to say that they do their jobs well. The workers on my floor are meticulous, thoughtful, and friendly. It is inconsiderate for students to complain about their ‘grim’ situations.
No matter the case, college students on our campus and in general need to be reminded of the fact that no one receives an extremely nice room their first year, and, furthermore, that any seemingly problematic situation they may be dealing with now makes for yet another freshman year antic to tell later on. Few schools offer dorms nicer than ours, which is important to keep in mind. After all, we are here to receive an education, not to live as pampered princes and princesses.
Trinity’s addition in late 2013 of the Crescent Street Townhouses creates an even more interesting dialogue on the discussion of on-campus housing. Equipped with laundry systems, multiple bathrooms, and stainless steel kitchens, these houses are debatably the nicest option for students to live in. However, these houses come at an additional charge totaling close to $3,000. In some ways, these townhouses create a divide within the junior and senior class, separating the more fortunate from the less. Students who cannot afford these living arrangements can live in various other upperclassmen dormitories, yet the divide and assumptions that accompany living on Crescent Street remain. Overall, Trinity students are very fortunate to have so many options for oncampus housing. They are among a minority of people to have access to a college education in the first place. Although they may not be pristine, the dormitories at our school are nothing less than manageable. A little décor and your room can feel even more like home. Bantams, consider yourselves lucky!