Old Gold&Black
VOL 109, NO. 13
WA K E F O R E S T ’ S S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1 9 1 6
MARCH 2, 2023
On-campus housing costs, explained Residence Life and Housing details pricing structure amid student concern MADDIE STOPYRA & CLAIRE O'BRIEN News Editor & Staff Writer
N
ot all residence halls are created equal — just ask a resident of Collins Residence Hall who has a friend in Angelou. And yet — given both students are in a single or double room — those students pay the same rate for on-campus housing. “The discrepancies in freshman housing are very clear, and I think that it is very unjust that I am paying the same amount as other people,” Gabrielle Becka, a freshman living in Collins Residence Hall, said. Despite recent renovations in Bostwick, Johnson and Luter Residence Halls, some freshmen feel that there is a drastic difference in quality between residential spaces. Becka, who lives in a double, explains the inconveniences she and her roommate face in their room. “There isn’t enough space for both my roommate and me,” Becka said. “Whenever one of us has to get to another part of the room, one of us usually has to move out of the way.” In contrast, freshman Molly Steur describes the spacious room she and her roommate share in Angelou Residence Hall. “We both have two full-size closets that are honestly bigger than the closet that I have back at home,” Steur said. “We are able to have our own space very easily because there is just so much of it. It’s phenomenal. It’s a very large room, and we defi-
nitely have our own corners. We don’t have to encroach on each other’s space at all.” On-campus housing costs increase across the board every year because of increased expenses — which include utilities, labor costs and finished goods such as furniture and other amenities — some of which are due to inflationary pressures, which have increased in recent years. “We're in a whole different world, at least in the past 18 months or so, in terms of inflation,” Dean of Residence Life and Housing (RLH) Matt Clifford said. For the 2022-2023 academic year, single rooms cost $6,163 per semester, and double rooms cost $5,224 per semester, regardless of the dorm in which you live — other than rooms in Deacon Place, which cost $6,403. Next year, 2023-2024, the rates will increase by around three percent. Clifford explained that prices are determined by RLH and approved by the Board of Trustees. How much a student will pay per semester also depends on the privacy and utilities available in a student’s primary living space, as well as amenities such as kitchens. “We really have three room rates,” Clifford said. “Generally speaking, a standard double room is the lowest priced. The notion there is that you’re sharing your primary living space. Then we have another pricing for
a single room or an apartment-style space. In terms of that element, we're looking certainly at the primary living space, which is private. This rate structure also allows [us to offer] variability with some amenities.” In previous years, RLH followed a more complex model that listed six different housing options. Students were able to choose between a single room, double room (not including Polo Hall), a back double on the quad, a triple room, an apartment single and an apartment double. Alongside following the institutional standard for cost distribution, RLH simplified its rate structure during the 2008-2009 academic year to help students plan ahead financially. “We had some consultants come through and help us look at our rate structure and simplify it for students with really a couple of goals,” Clifford said. “One is just to help simplify the rate structure, making it easier for students as they're going through making their decisions and helping students be able to navigate the process much more easily. And probably the primary reason was to make it a lot easier for students to be able to estimate and plan financially for their cost of attendance.” See Housing, Page 4