Monday, March 31, 2014

Assignment #2: Transitional Housing

Preview: Residence Education and Housing Services' Stance on Transitional Housing 



Transitional housing continues to be an issue at Michigan State University because the number of incoming freshmen, transfer students, and returning residents are always changing, according to Assistant Director of Residence Education and Housing Services Charlie Thompson-Orsua. 

"Certainly there is some forecasting that can be done, but the numbers are always fluctuating," he said. "We try to do the best we can to be aware of it."

According to Laura Cole, the assistant manager of the Housing Assignments Office, the fall semester of 2013 saw an increase in transitional housing that affected 1,131 residents, compared to the 798 students impacted in 2012.

She said the increase was predictable because of a steady increase throughout the past three years, as well as the ongoing renovations of Butterfield and Landon residence halls, which currently make 700 rooms unavailable to residents on campus. 

As Butterfield and Landon will be completed by next fall, it is predicted that MSU will not have any transitional housing cases in 2014, said Cole via email.

Despite misconceptions about MSU’s intentions for utilizing transitional housing, Assistant Director of Communications for REHS Ashley Chaney said the university guarantees housing for all freshmen even if they must add an additional person to each room. 

"We have so much data that shows the impact of students who live on campus, and how that positively impacts their experience," she said. 



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