Residential college expects large fall return of first-year students

While many students move off campus after their mandatory first year of dorm life, most Residential College students are choosing to stay.

Resident fellow Daniel O’Sullivan estimates that 50 percent of students will be returning to the dormitory next year.

Many students said their dorm experience has been a good one.

“It’s been cool,” resident Ryan Campbell said. “The Residential College has everything you could want. You’ve got a kitchen, weight room, good friends. You can’t beat it.”

Despite his positive experience in the Residential College, Campbell said the allure of offcampus living is too hard to resist.

“I feel like I’m grown, and I’ve got 19 and 20-year-olds telling me what to do,” Campbell said.

Resident Doug Odom said the value of the Residential College will keep him coming back next year.

“If I were to have to pay for meals and gas to commute to campus, the extra money spent on the dorm is really worth it in the long run,” Odom said.

Odom said the tight-knit community has been one of his favorite aspects of the Residential College.

“I got to meet a lot of people at the beginning, and for people who didn’t go the fraternity route like me, it was a really good way to meet people.”

O’Sullivan also thinks the social aspects of the college has allowed for a good dorm experience.

“We have a real sense of community now,” said O’Sullivan,

“We feel like we are a part of the campus. We know each other better.”

To enhance the sense of community in the dormitory, the Residential College hosts social events throughout the year.

Students have been invited to participate in crawfish boils as well as play a game of ‘assassins’ where residents were given a person they had to meet.

Many students have participated in these activities. Special non-university classes were among the events offered to residents.

“I really liked the different activities the RC has going on,” said resident Jackie Boyce, “I’ve even been able to participate in French cooking classes with Dr. O’Sullivan.”

The Residential College’s integrated cafeteria is a favorite among residents

“My favorite part of the Residential College is having the cafeteria here, which is very convenient,“ Boyce said.

“I really like that we have our own cafeteria and unlimited meals,” Odom said. “It’s been a real lifesaver for people like me who never learned to cook.”

The first year has not gone without its challenges.

O’Sullivan said the Residential College has had to battle the views of people outside the dorm.

“We’ve had to overcome a certain perception from the wider community that we never leave the Residential College, that we barricade ourselves in here and never leave,” O’Sullivan said.

“The fact of the matter is that just as people go home to their residence halls or to their apartments or to their Greek houses, at the end of the day we come home to the Residential College, and in that way it’s very much like those other places. We just choose to live here and we form a community.”