Residence Services starts new process to avoid overflow

In case another residence hall overflow were to happen, Residence Services has a new renewal process that allows students more control of their living situations.

Last semester, Residence Services had an overflow of students because of late applicants. T.J. Logan, senior assistant director of Residence Services, said the department has made changes that may prevent that this semester.

“We’re trying to make the best decisions we can,” Logan said.

The first part of the renewal process is to fill out a personal profile, choose a meal plan, request a roommate and submit the $200 pre-paid housing fee. The second part is simply to select a room. The new process gives students more time to research potential roommates and rooms available to them.

This semester, the first day to renew housing contracts was Monday.

Logan said one of the reasons Residence Services revised the renewal process was because of changes in the Placement, Advising and Scheduling System.

PASS was a program for incoming freshmen to visit Kent State and go through an orientation about the university. Students were also given their room assignments at the program.

The new advising and registration program will be called Destination Kent State and will be held in the summer, giving more time to students already living on campus to renew their contracts.

To solve the problem of having more students than rooms last semester, Residence Services put some students in lounges or three students in a two-student room.

Stopher Hall, Johnson Hall and Centennial F housed some students three to a room. The rooms needed to have a private bath and be big enough to fit three students.

Alicia Duris, sophomore pre-nursing major, had to live in a temporary room with two other roommates. She said it really was not a big deal.

“It was nice because we got to meet two different people instead of just one other person,” Duris said.

As the semester moves forward, some students either drop out or never show up. If Residence Services turned away the late applicants and did not have a surplus of students, there would be empty rooms.

When rooms are not occupied, Residence Services still pays for the upkeep. Because of empty rooms, the price for students already living in the dorms would be a higher rate. With the economy on the downturn, Logan said the department wants to be mindful of students.

Contact room and board reporter Kristyn Lebovitz at [email protected].