Students at Quinnipiac University began the move-in process this week, only for some first-years, maybe not to their permanent room.
“I’m confused, but I’m content with anything,” first-year Tolu Peters said.
Peters is currently one of 41 first-year students who will be living in study lounges, transformed into a dorm to handle increased enrollment this year.
“I was worried for my daughter. She’s still 17, so I’m worried about her. What it’s going to be, are there going to be a lot of people? I’m still worried,” said Bolu Peters, Tolu’s mom.
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Peters will share her space with three other students.
Tom Ellett, chief experience officer at Quinnipiac, said there will be roughly nine study lounges housing anywhere from four to eight people for the time being.
“That’s the goal. Short term. As soon as we go through census date and so forth, we believe we’ll be very close to having all of those students in a permanent room,” Ellett said.
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He said right from the get-go, the university had communication with students and families regarding this situation.
“We sent out a series of communications for those students who didn’t register for classes, who didn’t turn in a housing contract or who didn’t pay their bill which was due at the end of June and we had those students who were more likely not to come to the institution,” he said.
Those living in the study lounges will pay on average roughly a thousand dollars less per semester for room and board until they go into more permanent housing, according to Ellett.
“This happens at all colleges and universities, okay. This has happened probably five times in the last 20 years at Quinnipiac. It’s happened down the street at another institution, up the street. It’s happening across the country,” Ellett said.
The university is also in the process of building a brand-new residential hall that’s expected to be completed around August 2024.
“We have a new residents hall for 417 beds. It’s going to be state of the art, sustainability and LEED certified, and all of those things that we’re excited about on this campus,” Ellett said.
