By the time Aug. 1 rolled around, it was clear that Webb Hall was not going to be big enough to house all the male underclassmen that were expecting to move in on Aug. 12. A total of 174 students can live in Webb Hall; the number of students that were set to move into Webb was approximately 179.
The administration was faced with a decision: Where were they going to house the extra students? They turned to a solution that had been effective in past years — some undergraduate, unmarried students were allowed to live in the married student apartments (MSA) under certain circumstances.
When the MSA solution was first pursued, Tony Jones, dean of students, discovered that only one married student apartment was unoccupied. Two apartments were necessary for all the undergraduate students to have a place to live.
The administration then had to approach some MSA residents about the possibility of moving in to Emmanuel Village apartments, thus freeing up one more MSA apartment. After several rejections, they found a taker. Now they had two apartments to work with, each big enough to house four students.
Many concerns still lingered, but administration needed to decide who they were going to ask to move from Webb to MSA. Tony Jones said they wanted to find “older guys who would be a good fit” for living in a space where there were no RA’s checking up on them regularly.
Derek Jeffers, a junior, was one such student who was asked and now lives in MSA. Jeffers and his roommate were asked on the same day, and they were allowed to go tour the apartment.
Jeffers said that living in MSA is a “lot different than living in Webb” and “comes with a lot more responsibilities as we are not on the full meal plan.” Along with needing to cook more, there is just more space that requires more cleaning.
Jeffers quickly went on to note that living in MSA has been a positive change of pace for him.
“I feel as though I am being treated as an adult a lot more by being given this opportunity… I feel more independent now, and it has positively affected my motivation in classes as well as participation in campus activities.”
After students moved in and things settled down, it was clear that not everyone who signed up to live in Webb Hall actually moved in. Webb Hall houses 147 students currently. While there would have been enough room in Webb Hall, the administration had to play it safe, and as far as Jeffers is concerned, he likes how it turned out.