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Jenna Mancini

One of the reasons I chose to attend Cabrini was because of the "family-like atmosphere" described to me by admissions counselors. Throughout my first year at college, I have found this statement to be generally true. However, a few weeks ago I received an impersonal letter in my mailbox from my "family." This letter informed me that I did not have a spot on campus next year, although a record number of spots were being reserved for incoming first-year students. Family? I know of no family that would throw its relatives out on the street to make room for a distant stranger. Is the "Cabrini family" selling point merely a catch phrase? However, if Cabrini is being run like a business, then this business is failing miserably. The key to any good business is to satisfy the customers and keep them coming back. The students here have been faithful customers to Cabrini for a year or longer, but our opinions and needs are placed behind clients, or new students, that the college is trying to recruit. Why are they guaranteed housing and we are not? Why does a college that obviously has no room to house a large number of students continue to accc.pt them in record numbers? Cabrini should be concerned about keeping the customers they have happy. It only takes so long for customers to get fed up with poor service and move on to another business that will treat them with more respect.

Cabrini also claims to foster analytical thinking and questioning. However, when I approached a staff member with my housing concerns I was told that "every minute you talk to me is one less minute I have to work on the problem." How can this institution claim to value students who think critically and independently when those who do are regarded as nuisances?

Until now, I have had few problems with Cabrini. Cabrini has a dedicated faculty who genuinely cares about their students, and a community that fosters friendships and interaction. It's sad that housing problems have caused so much anger and discontent in a community that is normally tight. I realize a student housing committee was established for input, but the group did not represent the student body accurately-while there were residents and commuters on the committee, the only interest group of students represented were athletes. What about the members of campus ministry or theater or honors students? The current policy voted on by this committee and staff awards points based on the number of semesters lived on campus and class status. A point system is not an entirely bad idea; the system just needs to be refined. More criteria should be added to differentiate between ties.

Members of the Cabrini community have complained about apathetic students. If this is the case, why not reward students who are involved in campus life? Students who are involved in activities and obtain satisfactory GPAs are probably not the stu-