CAMPUS NEWS November 28,2§07 8
Campus Apartments Will Bring Changes to Meredith
Amber McKinney
Erin Etheridge
Staff Writers
The Meredith College
Board of Trustees
approved plans to con
struct on-campus apart
ments for junior and
senior residents during
its fall meeting, writes
Melyssa Allen in an
article appearing in the
November issue of In a
Nutshell, the college's
newsletter for faculty
and staff members.
The apartments,
which will likely be
located on the campus's
southwest corridor, adja
cent to Hillsborough
Street, represent the goal
of Meredith's Vision 2010
campaign to have a resi
dent population of 1,500
students, states Allen in
her article, Apartment-
Style Housing Approved.
She adds that the col
lege's current residence
halls can accommodate
approximately 1,000 stu
dents.
The apartment pro
posal approved by the
Board of Trustees on
October 26^ includes
plans for a three-story
building that is approxi
mately 105,000 square
feet and can accommo
date as many as 252 stu
dents, says AUen.
The Meredith apart-
ment-style housing
website, http://www.
meredith.edu/apartments
states that construction
of the $22 million facil
ity will likely begin in
the spring of 2008. The
apartments are slated for
a fall 2009 opening.
There wiU be 48 four-
bedroom, two-bathroom
units offered, as well as
30 two-bedroom, two-
bathroom units, writes
Allen. The bedrooms are
designed for single occu
pancy.
All apartments will
come furnished with
"a living/dining area,
a kitchen with full-
sized appliances, and a
full-sized washer and
dryer," according to the
Meredith website.
The same website
mentions that apartment
residents should also
be on the lookout for a
coffee or snack shop, a
mail room, meeting and
lounge spaces, an out
door patio, and a recep
tion lobby.
Along with the new
apartment building
come new policies spe
cifically designed for its
residents. The Board of
Trustees approved 24-
hour visitation by males
and females as well as
alcohol consvunption by
residents who are 21 and
older, states Allen. She
adds that these measures
affect only apartment
residents. Existing resi
dence halls will continue
to be alcohol-free and fol
low scheduled visitation
hours.
The Meredith website
also stresses that rules
could be enforced as to
the location of alcohol
consumption and visita
tion limits within a given
time period for apart
ment residents and their
guests.
Although it has been
said that alcohol and 24-
hour visitation policies
will be confined to the
apartment residences,
some members of the
Meredith commimity
are worried about how
these changes in policy
will affect the rest of the
campus.
"There is no way
they are going to be
able to contain men and
alcohol in the apart
ments," says sophomore
Meghan Kent. "That
policy change will spread
through the campus."
"I'm excited about
having apartments,"
says sophomore Sara
Roberson. "As small as
Meredith College is,
however, you cannot
fragment the campus.
I'm concerned about the
alcohol policy; male visi
tation doesn't bother me,
but the alcohol policy
bothers me because I
don't know what kind of
people will be attracted
by the alcohol."
Student Government
Association President
Britney Brown is not
worried about possible
breaches in the new
policies. "I am even more
comfortable with these
policies by knowing that
rules will be enforced
upon these policies,"
says Brown. "I believe
that if Meredith College
promotes its students to
be strong women, they
should know that its stu
dents will be responsible
individuals while living
in these apartments."
The apartments will
likely have "one profes
sional who lives in the
building and who holds
office hours there/' states
the Meredith website. It
goes on to say that "The
apartments will be run
as apartments - not as a
residence hall."
The above measures
will be put into place
to fulfill the college's
goal of attracting more
upperclassmen to living
on campus. Allen writes
that such policies will
offer students "increased
options along with
increased responsibility."
Brown also thinks
that the apartments
wiU be an incentive for
upperclassmen to stay
on campus. Brown says,
"I think students will see
the apartments as a more
convenient way to stay
involved in the Meredith
community."
A study conducted by
Brailsford and Dimlavey
in the spring of 2006
concluded that "stu
dents move off campus
because they desire more
privacy, more space and
increased freedom." As
of this fall, "[0]nly 24%
of upperclassmen lived
on campus," states the
college's apartment infor
mation website.
Junior Joy Strickland
believes that the apart
ments will draw in
students considering
Meredith College. She
says, "I think the on-
campus apartments will
appeal to a wide range
of prospective students
because they provide
on-campus converuence
with an off-campus feel."
Brown also believes
that by building apart
ments, Meredith wUl
become a more attrac
tive choice for possible
applicants. "I think this
change will be an aspect
about Meredith that will
appeal to prospective
students," says Brown.
"Our research for the
on-campus apartments
shows that 17 of our peer
institutions have some
type of apartment style
housing for its students.
Personally, I think the
building of these apart
ments is Meredith's way
of saying that it trusts
its students to be inde
pendent and confident
young women."
In response to the
Board of Trustees' deci
sion to approve the
building of on-cam-
pus apartments. Vice
President for College
Programs Jean Jackson,
class of 1975, said in the
November issue of The
Lux that "From their
matriculation, Meredith
College students are
encouraged to become
scholars, leaders and
socially responsible
adults. Offering them
developmental oppor
tunities in on-campus
living will support this
growth."
Juniors and seniors
can continue living in the
residence halls if they
desire, says the apart
ment housing website.
Apartment rent "will
be higher than the cost of
living in a residence hall,
though financial aid will
apply as for any on-cam-
pus housing," states the
website.
The college is seek
ing LEED certification
for the apartments as
well. Allen writes in
her article that "The
Leadership in Energy
and Envlrorm\ental
Design (LEED) Green
Building Rating System
is the nationally accept
ed benchmark for the
design, construction and
operation of high perfor
mance green buildings."
The Meredith website
adds, "The exterior of
the building will incor
porate brick and other
finishes consistent with
other campus buildings,
particularly Jones Chapel
and the original core
campus buildings." In
other words, the apart
ment building's architec
ture will blend in with
the rest of tiie campus
architecture.
The website con
cludes that "Meredith
has thrived because of
its ability to grow and
change and serve the
needs of its students
for 116 years. We are
encouraging women,
whom we expect to
leam, lead and achieve
as adults in class and in
organizations, to make
more mature decisions as
individuals." Overall, the
Meredith College staff,
faculty, and students are
generally accepting of
and entiiusiastic about
the new apartments.