May the odds be ever in your favor…SERIOUSLY!
Imagine waking up one day and realizing you have nowhere to live on campus next year. That is exactly what happened to some students this past Friday during the housing selection.
This year, Residence Life changed the order of housing selection by starting with upcoming sophomores, juniors and then seniors. It also added the options of living off campus at Valley Forge Military Academy as an option for students due to not having enough beds for current students and incoming freshmen.
The day before housing selection took place, The Office of Residence Life sent out an email saying that Valley Forge Military Academy was no longer an option for off campus housing and everyone who would be living there would live on campus again.
When this was released students became angry and worried they would not have housing for next year.
The housing process works like this:
Students are given a lottery number and a specific time to log onto Cabrini One to pick rooms. When you log on at your time, you select a button that shows you what rooms are available on campus that match your roommate requests. For example, if you request only five roommates, My Housing will only show you five-person rooms available.
When it came down to picking actual rooms, the upperclassmen struggled with getting certain apartments they wanted. Rising junior Matt Keelan had housing lottery number 4. Despite being one of the first ones to pick, Keelan was unable to pick the apartment he wanted for him and his roommates.
“I was furious. I was pick number 4 and I did not understand how I could not get a five-person apartment with my friends” Keelan said. Director of Residence Life Sue Kramer took to social media saying there were only a few reserved five-person apartments for seniors and RAs.
Psychology major Annie Gorski became worried when she learned she may not be able to live with all of her friends next year.
“There is a total of 6 of us living together next year. Our one roommate is studying abroad for the Fall semester, but we still wanted her to be able to live with us when she returned,” Gorski said. “When we went to pick housing, we were only able to choose a five-person suite because our other roommate was not given a lottery number.”
“I was completely stressed out. I did not want to abandon my roommate,” Gorski said. “We had to wait until 1:55 when we were allowed to pick any open rooms that were available without having to immediately fill all the spots. So in the end result, we were able to select a six-person suite in West.”
When this happened, students were upset about the situation and started tweeting.
Most students had to wait until housing was almost over to get where they wanted to be placed. “Some of my roommates went to the Residence Life Office and were able to talk to Sue Kramer. After that, it all worked out in the end. I am not rooming in a six-person apartment with all my friends so I can not complain.” Keelan said.
Now that housing selection is over, students are settling down with their new room selections. Everyone is now ready to finish their finals and be done for the summer.
*The Office of Residence Life has not responded to an interview request.*
If you have any questions or concerns about housing for next year, contact the Residence Life Office at reslife@cabrini.edu or visit them in Woodcrest Hall.
