With the year barely underway, the Office of Residential Life and Learning (ResLife)is already expecting some sophomores to map out much of the rest of their time at Tufts. We at the Daily think the process has been far too rushed.
Last year, Tufts compensated the 100-plus students it placed in forced triples with a one-time lottery boost. Most chose to use it for this year, but some elected to hold onto it for either their junior or senior housing arrangements. While the boost was more or less fair compensation, we cannot agree with ResLife's decision to impose such an early deadline.
Burgeoning enrollment is a problem outside of ResLife's control. Certainly, the office derives no pleasure from packing three people into doubles and has an interest in assuring that students are compensated for their troubles. The on-campus debate as to whether the office botched the lottery last year will continue to underlie the deadline discussion, but is largely irrelevant here. What is important is how the office moves forward, and it is for that reason that it is misguided to undercut the boost by requesting such prompt decisions.
The singular advantage of the boost is that it lets students tailor their higher numbers to their individual plans and use them when it would be most beneficial. As such, the only reason sophomores would use the advantage for the upcoming year would be if they plan to live on campus. But with their junior year approaching, they may very well choose to live off campus or even in another country while doing an abroad program.
While ResLife has admittedly offered to work with students who are unsure about their plans and give them an extension, the very setting of the deadline is at best a nuisance. It is unfair to expect students, who are supposed to being reciprocated for poor living conditions last year, to make housing choices before the rest of the student body is required to.
The university needs to fix its housing situation. For example, more dorm rooms are needed to ensure that forced triples do not happen again. The university also needs to best utilize the dormitories it has by maintaining the buildings and making every room livable. ResLife, however, first needs to help the sophomores that were affected by last year's enrollment situation. The sooner ResLife adjusts its deadline accordingly, the better off those students will be.
