RPInsider

We wanted to catch up a little on what the housing lottery situation looks like, so we asked just a few questions of Residence Life.  Tom Tarantelli responded, and the full text is below.

RPInsider: We were curious about whether Blitman Commons filled after the last lottery.  Since there was so much talk about students not wanting to live there and it was important to the amount of upper class students who might have been pushed off campus, we were hoping to find out if the building filled up.  It looked like there were some pretty high lottery numbers.  Can you tell us anything?

Tom Tarantelli: There are some rooms available that will be added to the upper class room assignment process.  In order to participate in the lottery for Blitman, students completed an application that asked them to outline their programming interests.  Overwhelmingly those students were excited about the opportunity to live in Blitman and to participate in CLASS programming.

Also, how do you think the process as a whole is going so far?

We all think the process is going well.  We realize that some students did not get the rooms they wanted because of high lottery numbers.  That has always been the case and we want students to understand that we will do what we can to accommodate them.  We still have the upper class lottery and room assignment to complete.  That will be completed on February 28^th.

Do you expect the remaining upper class halls to fill?

We do.  Because this has been a change we have tried to communicate each step as clearly as possible and in ways that students and parents had access to the information needed to participate in the various housing lotteries.  We anticipate that students who wants to live on campus will be accommodated.

Is there anything else you’d like the students to know?

Just that there are a lot of details involved in ramping up the lotteries and the room selection process.  We are working on those details and appreciate the many questions we are getting.  An upper class room selection information session is being held at 8 pm, Wednesday (tomorrow) in RU 3606.  Since the process is “compressed” into a tight time frame we appreciate any effort to help students get the information needed so that they can participate.

Photo credit

Share Uncategorized blitman, housing, residence life, tom tarantelli

RPI is getting rid of housing grants.  In an email sent by Dr. Eddie Ade Knowles  and Dr. Paul Marthers on Wednesday, the administration’s policy on these scholarships was clarified.  The full text is below our analysis.

Some important highlights:

• Housing grants are scholarships which are intended for use to offset on-campus living costs.
• Housing grants will not be offered to the class of 2014.
• Classes of 2011, 2012, and 2013 will keep their grants if they stay on campus.
• Greeks who have the grants will be able to keep them as long as it doesn’t exceed the cost of living in the fraternity.
• If you move off campus voluntarily, you forfeit the grant.
• If you can’t get a room in the lottery, you will get 50% of the grant for one semester.
• Important exception: If you already have a lease, you can use your housing grant for the cost of a meal plan ONLY, for one year.

Almost immediately after the email was sent,  the Grand Marshal Michael Zwack posted a tweet saying, “According to today’s email from Dr. Knowles, 10 months of work finally paid off….”  I applaud the GM for the work he has done in fixing these housing grants.

I’m a little confused about why this was published in the Poly before the email was sent out, mostly because it’s the first time that we know of the Poly breaking a story before we did!

I should also say that I’m very happy that the email was the first from an administrator which used bullet points and lists for the first time in recent memory.  This is a huge improvement, and it makes the email much clearer for students.  Keep that up, RPI!

As for the housing grants themselves, it looks like RPI is doing some effective damage control on a volatile issue.  This was upsetting a lot of students for a long time, and it seems like students will be glad to have these concessions. The Poly editorial had one line of opinion:

The Poly extends its thanks to the administration for working diligently to make a fair decision, and we hope that this policy has helped alleviate the confusion that has occurred over the past few weeks.

I agree with this comment, but I would like to also applaud the GM for “working diligently” on this issue.  This is something that might not have been addressed if it hadn’t been for the GM bringing it up in his meetings.

Here’s the full text:

Read more…

Share Uncategorized Dr. Knowles, GM, housing, Paul Marthers

Another housing post!

We got a tip a couple days ago from a Student Senator that the Senate passed a motion, which was sent to us (and isn’t posted online yet as far as we could find) to attempt to give a voice to the student body about housing reform.  The motion announces student dissatisfaction about a variety of the facets of Housing Selection.  Some quotes are below.

To address that sophomores should live mostly in residence halls and that upperclass students should live in apartments:

To express the dissatisfaction of the student body with the current system of on-campus housing, which we believe does not, in all cases, place students in housing which is most appropriate for their class year or the goals of the CLASS Initiative.

Responding to the Friday, Dec 18th email right before all students were leaving campus:

To express the dissatisfaction of the student body with the communication method employed by the Division of Student Life

What are they doing about it?

To invite members of the Student Life Division to a Roundtable Discussion on the Housing Process with members of the Student Senate…no later than March 1, 2010.

Share Uncategorized housing, residence life, Student Senate

Apparently, Monopoly houses = RPI residence halls?

You may have heard of a few changes to housing at RPI coming our way. You also might be one of the more than 1200 members in the Facebook group “Students Against RPI Housing Reform” Well, your elected student leaders hear you. The following is a response from GM Michael Zwack:

Hi Everyone,
I’ve been following the comments for most of the break and was wondering how both myself and the Student Senate could capture what everyone is trying to say to bring to Student Life.
I’m hosting a informal discussion about the housing process at 8pm on Thursday in the Student Government Suite (3rd floor of the Student Union), it would be great if anyone with comments to share would stop by!
Thanks,
The GM

There is a Facebook event here. If you’d like to talk with the people that represent you, this event might be worth your while!

Share Uncategorized CLASS, GM, housing, sophomore housing

1. New chairs in the DCC
2. New classrooms in Ricketts
3. Housing for the sophomores so that upperclassmen aren’t forced off campus
4. More parking for students
5. The ‘86 field renovations
   Read more…

Share Uncategorized Dr. Jackson, housing, President, VCC

Perhaps the imagery is a little strong, but you get the point

Were you invited to this Facebook group?  Well, so was I.  1,200 people joined the thing. 1,200 people said that they are against the somewhat vague notion of “RPI Housing Reform”.  From the first announcement of these changes, the majority of students have been opposed to the proposal (mostly on the grounds that some easy fixes would alleviate a lot of problems, e.g. Blitman is designed perfectly for sophomores), and we were glad to see that students were actually thinking about the issue, working together, and planning their response.

Today is January 15th.  Classes start the week after next.  There hasn’t been a post on the Facebook group since January 8th.  A whole week of no posting! This is incredible considering the fire and brimstone students were posting for several days after its formation.  Student interest in this issue appears to be gone.

We don’t blame the students.  They’ve simply fallen into the trap that the RPI administration has set time and time again:  they announce an unpopular policy via email at the beginning of a long break, and by the time students come back, they will have forgotten.  Look at the anger and emotion of Uprise at Five.  That continued on through the semester (for some), but after the summer, students came back willing to let it all go.

Classmates: You have an important decision to make.  Will you find a way to constructively voice your opinions about this issue or will you let it go?

I’m not being idealistic.  I know that the likelihood of changing this policy is very low.  The Vice Presidents who make these types of decisions are not usually willing to go back on them.  But this isn’t about changing the housing policy.  This is about giving students a voice.

The formal communication channel for students voices is the Student Senate.  The Senate had its last meeting before finals even started, so they weren’t able to make any sort of statement about the housing policy.  A grassroots Facebook group started, but seems to have fizzled out.  This issue needs a clear and strong leader (or group of leaders) who can make sure that the student voice is heard.

It’s not only about voicing negative concerns.  Students should be voicing the things that they do like about the plan (the most important of which is probably the timeline).  Get a sheet of paper, and start writing out what’s good and bad about the plan. Call it a List of Complaints, a Manifesto for Change, a Student Perspective on Housing — it doesn’t matter.  Make it intelligent, and make it public.  Get student input from across the spectrum.   Make it look pretty.  Publish it. Make copies.  Send it to student government.  Send it to Residence Life.  Send it to Student Life.  Send it to the President.  Heck, even send it to the Board of Trustees.  Send it to the media, and send it to us.  Get the student voice heard, and you will have accomplished something.  Explain that you attend a university, not a business operation.  Do SOMETHING before you lose your chance.

Or, just sit there and complain.  See what happens next time.

Share Uncategorized housing, residence life, sophomore housing

Here's the skinny...

The email below was just sent from Dr. Eddie Ade Knowles, VP for Student Life, and Mr. Claude Rounds, Vice President for Administration, to Rensselaer students.  This is a long-awaited email that outlines the housing selection process for the 2010-2011 year.

Here’s the skinny (in a format much easier to read than the long email…):
Read more…

Share Uncategorized CLASS, Claude Rounds, Dr. Knowles, housing, sophomore housing