EDITORIAL: A new way of life in residences

Initial impressions of the University's new college house plan are a thumbs up. For several years, students have complained to University officials that high rise living leaves much to be desired. There also has been lengthy discussions by administrators on how to solve that problem. And finally, students and administrators seem to have come up with a plan that will work. Academic support programs are virtually non-existent in most dorms. The addition of more academic programs and bringing in faculty members to live in the college houses will be largely advantageous to students. Student interest in the different college houses is essential for the plan to have marginal success and not drive students to live offcampus. With this plan, students have the option to be very active in their college house or not participate at all. Administrators have made this plan viable to a larger portion of the student body by eliminating the mandatory meal plans that currently exist in college houses like Hill House. And because rents will not raise to fund the new plan, living on campus is decent financial option as well. While the college houses should improve upperclassmen living on campus, the plan may be detrimental to new students since it eliminates freshman housing. Living in a freshman dorm like the Quadrangle, surrounded by people who are dealing with the same first-year problems is an integral part of the college experience. That experience may be lost with the new college house system. The University also doesn't have facilities that are conducive to a college house plan. The high rises are apartment-style living which typically doesn't foster much community interaction. If administrators want to see the plan succeed, they may need to spend more than the $100 million talked about for facility renovations. Until more of the fine details of the plan are worked out, it is unclear how successful the new college houses will be in place of the current residential system. But with all the new academic and social programs expected to be created in these college houses, it will certainly be a marked improvement over living in a dorm where you barely know your neighbor.