Stellar GPA's and seniority rewarded through revamped housing policy

By: Madison Cox News Editor

Posted: 2/5/10

Students at LSC who excelled academically last semester will be rewarded soon.

Those with the most credits and highest cumulative GPA will have first choice for living arrangements in the 2010-2011 year.

When students begin signing up for rooms on campus in April the system will be designed in a different way from the past, according to Erin Rossetti, assistant director of residential life. Instead of waiting in line on a first-come, first-serve basis, students will choose their rooms based on the number of credits they have, and their GPA at the end of the fall 2009 semester.

"It [the change] was actually based on feedback from last year," said Rossetti. "We're seeing a lot more people interested in living on campus. There were some concerns, and we want to make this as stress-free as possible."

In order to be assigned a room in any residence hall, a student must have paid a $200 housing deposit by April 19 and be registered for at least 12 credits. According to Rossetti, these things will be strictly enforced.

A list of student account numbers will be posted on the window of the office of Student Life, along with the number of credit hours and GPA of each student. Students will then go to Room 100 in the Academic and Student Activities Center to sign up for a room during his or her specified time.

Rita Bole sign-ups will take place first on April 20. Juniors and seniors will be considered for the residence hall first. In the past, students needed to have a full suite of six people in order to sign up. This will no longer be required in the housing selection.

Because of the high demand for Rita Bole, students who are interested will need to sign up for consideration by April 2.

On April 21, students choosing to live in any of the Stonehenge buildings will sign up. This night will also allow sophomores to choose Rita Bole if there are any available spaces.

While the new process is intended to be easier for both students and administration, there are still concerns.

"I'm in a suite right now that works really well with each other, and I don't want it to change because of a different selection process," Lauren Turmel, a junior graphic design major living in Rita Bole said. "Last year we were able to hold our suites; this year it's based on your credits and how high your GPA is."

However, Rossetti believes that this new system will be more effective than past ones.

"We're certainly trying to take feedback," she said. "We want to make a well-oiled process."