Do we really need more apartment-style​ residence halls?

Controversy looms over the expanding campus of Colorado Mesa University (CMU). The reason for the growing controversy is not because of the increasing campus size, but the way in which the money is being spent to expand CMU.

The university will be adding another apartment-style residence hall in 2020. The residence hall is expected to cost somewhere between $14 and $18 million dollars. The new addition to campus has sparked debate among students and staff who argue whether or not an apartment-style residence hall is really the best usage of money.

Yet, supporters of the residence hall argue that there is a great need for more housing. At the beginning of the 2019-2020 academic year, CMU was at 99 percent occupancy. Ultimately, this meant that there was barely enough room to house any more students on campus. Consequently, the closer a college is to maximum occupancy, the greater of a toll is taken on enrollment. 

The problem with this particular residence hall coming in 2020, is that it is not open to freshmen – only sophomores and up. But, because the large majority of students that live on-campus are freshmen, it makes it seem that building a residence hall that excludes freshmen is not the smartest of moves.

 So, it begs the question, how does a residence hall that excludes freshmen alleviate the need for more freshmen housing? 

There are eight residence halls that primarily house freshmen, and four apartment style residence halls that are not inclusive of freshmen. Clearly, most of the buildings are geared towards freshmen because many upperclassmen live off campus.

First-year Mavericks are also required to live on-campus their first year. But with occupancy being higher, and an additional residence hall that does not allow freshmen, enrollment may be hindered.

Not to mention, more students are coming to CMU now more than ever. There’s been a pattern of incoming classes that have been larger than the class before them for years. The class of 2019 was one of the biggest classes CMU has seen since 2013. 

The main source of criticism stems from the fact that CMU still wants to grow and expand as a university, so, it makes the decision to spend between $14 and $18 million dollars on a new residence hall exclusive of freshmen seem paradoxical.

Because of the high capacity at the beginning of the year, the consideration of Resident Assistants having to share rooms was on the table. If CMU truly wants to expand as a university, the upcoming apartment-style residence hall won’t help their cause.

At approximately 99% capacity at the beginning of the school year, enrollment rate could likely come to an abrupt halt until more housing options become available for freshmen.