More needs to be done with the housing process at SJU
This is the opinion of Mac Evans, SJU sophomore
SJU’s recent housing debacle has left a bitter taste in the mouths of many rising juniors and seniors, myself included. As students who have invested time and money into our education, we expect a basic level of competence when it comes to something as fundamental as housing.
Many students were sold on this institution based on the claim and promise of community living here at SJU. My dorm hall even has posters advertising this claim. However, this year, SJU’s handling of housing resources fell far short of expectations, leaving us feeling abandoned and disrespected.
Tuesday morning, rising juniors woke up ready to select their housing arrangements for the 2024-2025 school year. For many, not only were all apartment-style residences gone, but no selections could be made at all.
As of now, students are left in the dark, unsure of where we will be living and why certain decisions were made. It’s astounding that SJU would roll out a system that was so clearly ill-prepared to handle the volume of students trying to access it.
The communication from SJU Residential Life was far below par from what students were expecting. Those affected by the issue this morning were sent an email notifying them that all apartment-style residences were filled.
This left many scrambling to break up their roommate groups in the span of a few hours and causing many to select undesirable housing arrangements for their situation due to the stress of the situation. The response from SJU Residential Life told students that they would be put on waitlists and contacted later.
After I visited Residential Life multiple times and spoke with the director, Jameson Nogowski, I was told the same thing. It felt as if I was hearing them say, “We put you on a waitlist. Go away and be quiet.”
This calls for far greater action from SJU Residential Life. A slip up of this magnitude requires far more than a simple email with no real details. While my group did receive an opportunity for a housing agreement that we like, others I talked to have not been so fortunate.
As students, we should be focusing on our studies and building connections within our community, not worrying about where we’ll be sleeping next semester. This situation is mind boggling for an institution that does not allow off-campus housing.
SJU owes us more than just an apology—they owe us a commitment to improve their processes and reassurance that this kind of negligence won’t happen again. We deserve better, and it’s time for SJU to step up and deliver.