PAGE 2 // WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2011
NEWS
THE PENDULUM
Construction of new residential complex
for upperclassmen to begin this summer
PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY REUVnON
The Station at Mill Point will offer student amenities that include study rooms, a community Kitchen, a fitness room, a large lounge with a
fireplace and a swimming pool. Construction will take place in two phases, and the first is set to l)egin this summer.
Kassondra Ckx>3
News Editor
The Town of Elon has
approved construction of
The Station at Mill Point, a
new residential community
at Elon University designated
to house upperclassmen that
will begin this summer.
The community will be
located at Fire Station Fields,
walking distance from
campus, and will eventually
house up to 320 students in
25 buildings. While earlier
plans were to designate the
community as the “senior
village” for seniors only.
Smith Jackson, vice president
and dean of Student Life, said
it is likely juniors will be able
to live there, at least initially.
Modeled after The
Village at Wofford College in
Spartanburg, S.C., The Station
at Mill Point will feature
apartment-style living in a
neighborhood setting. The
buildings will be different
pastel colors and styles,
Jackson said. A building will
either have two four-person
apartments or four four-
bedroom apartments.
Pricing for The Station
at Mill Point is expected
to be about the same as
that of the Oaks, Jackson
said. Construction will be
completed in two phases and
phase one will begin this
summer, expected to be ready
for fall 2012.
Though the housing
selection process for the
neighborhood has not yet been
determined, Jackson said he
did not think students would
be assigned to apartments
randomly.
“1 would think that
students that are going to live
there would be able to select
the type of floor plan they’d
like,” he said.
All apartments will come
furnished and will include
four bedrooms, a kitchen, a
dining area, a living space,
a washer and dryer and a
porch facing the rest of the
community. Students will have
access to a central commons
building with amenities.
“We are real excited about
this,” Jackson said. “We’ve
seen it work very well on
other campuses and we think
it would be a great addition , a
great way to spend your senior
year with your classmates.
I don’t know if it’ll start off
immediately being all seniors,
but that’s what we’re moving
toward.”
The goal of creating
additional housing for
upperclassmen is twofold,
according to Connie Book,
associate provost for Academic
Affairs.
“One is for the students
themselves to be part of the
campus so they have all the
assets of the campus on their
fingertips,” she said. “Students
who live close to campus are
more intellectually engaged;
they have higher GPAs.”
The second reason is that
on campuses with four-year
residential requirements,
upperclassmen naturally
serve as mentors to freshmen
and sophomores. Book said. In
general, students are around
more when they’re not in class
and live closer to campus.
Senior Sarah McKenna said
she thought the proposed
plans for the neighborhood
looked nice, but she would
not choose to live there if
given the opportunity.
“When you live on campus,
you don’t learn how to live
out of college,” she said.
McKenna said her
experience in an off-campus
apartment has been an
educational one as she has
needed to become more
independent.
“I lived in The Oaks
sophomore year and I
didn’t have to think about
anything,” she said. “The rent
and utilities were taken care
of.”
Sophomore Adrienne
Brooks, who was denied on-
campus housing for next year,
said she liked the idea of the
new complex because it offers
more flexibility.
“I think it’s a good thing
because it will allow more
juniors and seniors to live on
campus if they want to,” she
said. “The location’s not that
bad.”
Each year, about 300 rising
juniors and seniors are denied
on-campus housing because
of space constraints in order
to have enough room for
freshmen and sophomores,
who are required to live on
campus.
Jackson and Book said there
are no plans to implement a
four-year requirement.
“We’ll be going into it
wanting a lot of student
input,” Jackson said. “It won’t
be a huge complex. 1 think the
location’s pretty neat because
it’s very convenient, but it’s
not right in the middle of
campus.”
a
Lack of funding creates uncertainty
about completion of Multi-Faith Center
proudly supports
AUTiSMSPEAKS
time to
Sam Parker
Senior Fteporter
The beginning date of construction
on Elon University’s Multi-Faith Center
remains unclear because of lack of
funding.
Smith Jackson, vice president and
dean of Student Life, said the center’s
construction is contingent upon raising
funds before any groundbreaking can
occur. Unlike the new residence halls,
which are funded by bonds, and the
Elon Town Center, which will be funded
by business leases, the Multi-Faith
Center depends on donations for its
construction.
“It doesn’t affect student tuition or fees
as its construction is being fundraised,”
Jackson said. “But we have to have the
money committed before we can start
construction since this facility won’t be
revenue producing.”
Jackson said University Advancement
is currently raising funds for the center
through a $100 million campaign that
began in fall 2008. He said fundreiising,
which is more than 80 percent complete,
will be directed primarily to the
institution’s endowment, but will also
contribute to building new athletic
facilities, completing the Academic Village
and constructing the Multi-Faith Center.
Jackson said the Center holds as much
priority as other campus construction
projects because it directly addresses The
Elon Commitment’s goal of preparing
students to be global citizens.
Senior Zach Jordan, co-founder of
Beuer Together, an interfaith, action-
oriented student organization, said
though the idea of the center focuses
on core Elon Commitment principles,
he believes students are going to need
to make conscious efforts to involve
themselves in multi-faith conversations
once the Center is complete.
The administration throws around
a lot of large words about engaged
citizenship and inspired leaders and
global citizens and all these things, but
it’s really up to the students to make that
a reality,” Jordan said. “It’s not going to
happen organically - it may, which would
be great, but we’re going to have to take
measures to ensure that it does, otherwise
it’s just a waste of time. Why build a multi
faith center if you don’t have students who
have an interest in interfaith activities?”
Lynn Huber, associate professor of
religious studies, said she believes some
conversations amongst students will
happen naturally, but she also thinks
some intentionality must come from the
individueils directing the center so that
opportunities for such conversations Ccm
be created.
“I mean, you do have to kind of speak
openly, honestly and be forthright, but 1
think it’s also helpful for people to have
some guidance, especially for those
people who have never been involved in
multi-faith conversations before, to have
set ground rules,” Huber said.
Beyond the conversational component
the center will offer, Huber said she
believes the Multi-Faith Center will serve
as a physical, visual component for Elon’s
already increasing religious diversity.
“It says that people of different faith
backgrounds cire welcome here, and 1
think having that space will say a lot and
hopefully make Elon a more vibrant place
in terms of religious diversity,” Huber
said.
Sophomore Abbey Keifer, president
of Lutherans, Episcopalians and Friends
(LEAF), a Christian fellowship student
organization, said she believes expansion
is necessary so that all campus religious
organizations, new or old, can enjoy more
space and opportunities.
“The little Truitt Center is really small
now,” Keifer said. “There’s one, or I guess
two, meeting rooms, but we kind of fight
over it all the time. So, it’s nice to have this
big building that’s in the plans, and it’s
about time. If we’re focusing so heavily on
diversity and increasing our opportunities
for people of other faiths and cultures,
it’s about time that we have this great
big center so that we can attract people
of lesser known faiths or less popular
faiths.”