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Classrooms able to accommodate up to 958 students
BY BASMA HUMADI, LEO SUN LIBRA MOON
It is no secret student housing is in high demand as the population of incoming Mason students continues to grow. Just last year, seniors at Mason were waitlisted and told they were not guaranteed housing due to lack of availability and the need to prioritize other students.
Luckily, the housing department has come up with a creative solution to better serve the housing needs of all its students: relocate students to classrooms across campus.
“We are pleased to announce, after much strategery and listening to the concerns of our Mason student body, that we are expanding and implementing a new program next year which will allow us to meet the housing demands of all our students,” wrote the housing department in a mass email that was sent to the Mason community.
“Starting in the 2019-2020 school year, students will have the pleasure of being able to live in classrooms. The following buildings will be available for student housing: Aquia, Art and Design, East, Exploratory Hall, Innovation Hall, Lecture Hall, Planetary Hall and Research Hall.”
In total, the classrooms will be able to serve up to 958 students. Students will be able to either share classrooms with two to three roommates or request a smaller one-person classroom for themselves.
This new plan will allow the university to immediately address housing concerns and save money by not having to build new residences.
Classes will still continue in these buildings throughout the school year. For some students, they will have to leave their rooms for hours at a time so that classes can be held.
“I’m going to be staying in Planetary Hall 203, which will be having a 7:20 p.m. to 10 p.m. class Mondays and Wednesdays in the Fall semester,” said freshman Renée Sance. “My friend in Planetary Hall 207 has a 1:30 p.m. to 2:45 p.m. class Mondays and Wednesdays, so we agreed she’ll come to my room during that time, and I’ll be able to go over to her place during my class. I guess it works out fine.”
For more spacious classrooms that can hold 30 to 50 people, residing students will be able to have a section of the room sectioned off as their bedroom, while the other half of the classroom will be able to still have class going. Computer science major Paige Turner is one of those students.
“I’m going to be in Exploratory and apparently will have a Women and Gender Studies class going on a couple times a week,” Turner said. “I think it will be nice, because I’ll be able to gain exposure to a topic outside of my major. Also, I think listening to a lecture will help me have something to fall asleep or nap to.”
Junior Kareem O’Weet is mainly relieved he will not have to stress about not having housing.
“Frankly, I’m just happy I won’t be homeless next year,” O’Weet said. “I haven’t been placed in a building yet, but I hope I get Aquia, because it’s in a pretty decent location and probably won’t be as crowded as other peak places on campus like Planetary, for example.”
Housing for all students will be finalized by April 15.
