The increase falls below average in comparison to those of schools across the country for the next school year, but the University remains at the top of the Big Ten for overall housing cost. The agreement on the change came after months of discussion and includes several points that Housing officials want to improve.
One of these points concerns the issue of room size. Anyone who had an overflow triple during their first year remembers the challenge of cramming three people's junk into a room comparable in size to a jail cell. With applications for the incoming class on the rise every year, these sardine-like living quarters have become more numerous and commonplace. But according to University Housing, the University plans to eliminate these triples completely within the next two years. Whether or not this will mean plans for a new residence hall on campus or stricter regulations for upperclassmen housing in upcoming years has yet to be determined, but recognizing and attacking the bad living situation that overflow triples cause is definitely a step in the right direction.
First-year nostalgia may bring back recollections of many students camping out during the opening week of school in residence hall lounges. This raises concerns among many students about room availability - an inconvenient and frustrating situation. If Housing officials are to solve the problem of overcrowded dorm conditions and eliminate the use of overflow triples, they must first ensure that the number of students admitted and placed in assigned residence halls is in check.
While this relatively small increase for housing costs and the intent to improve room conditions and respond to housing concerns should be applauded, there are still issues that University Housing needs to address. A portion of the money paid as "housing fees" goes to specific programs available in the residence hall communities. While this is a way for those programs to receive the necessary funding, they do so by yanking even more money from the wallets of many students who will never have access to the programs. It is hardly fair to make every student living in University housing fund these programs when only a fraction are involved with them. Already, the money extracted from students for housing costs at the University surpasses that of most other schools. By eliminating the extra amount going toward the programs and using other sources for their funding, University Housing could take a significant chunk out of housing costs and be more in line with other universities' housing fees.
University Housing appears to finally be considering the concerns brought up by students considering conditions in residence halls. A small fee increase is refreshing but officials should try to attack other issues that could further bring the cost of living on campus at the University down. Just to have a decrease in the percentage of housing cost increase for one year is not enough. The University's cost for housing is still well above average and steps should be taken to bring it down.