LAWRENCE JOURNAL-WORLD
STUDENT LIFE
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 1996 11D
Residence halls offer fit for most students
Residence halls help shape students socially and academically
BY KERRY HILLARD
SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL-WORLD
Flipping through the Kansas University student housing guide, freshman Dora Naughton was attracted to the description of Hashinger Residence Hall as a center for the creative arts. When Naughton visited Hashinger Hall on a university tour, she felt as though she had found
Naughton is one of many students searching for their niche in the residence halls. Finding the right residence hall is an issue many new KU students seek to resolve.
"I really fell in love with this dorm," said Naughton, of Columbia, Mo. "I thought, 'This is where I'm going to live.' People were really friendly, and I was impressed."
"Students aren't looking at the weight room or the computer
lab; they're looking for, 'Where do I fit?' said Director of Student Housing Kenneth Stoner. "They want to live where they can say. That's like me. I have a place.' That's what it's all about."
That special something
Each residence hall features programs and facilities designed to help students find their niche.
Known as a center for the creative arts, Hashinger Hall features a small theater, dance studio, darkroom, various practice rooms and other music and art facilities. Hashinger Hall is open to students of all majors.
"Students aren't looking at the weight room or the computer lab; they're looking for, 'Where do I fit?'?"
— Kenneth Stoner, director of Student Housing
According to "Living at KU," the department of Student Housing residence hall guide, McColum Hall is the largest and most diverse residence hall. McColum offers an international cultural festival and features special study rooms. Residents can also access the Internet directly from their rooms without pre-empting the telephone line.
Next to McColllum Hall on Daisy Hill is Ellsworth Hall. As stated in "Living at KU." Ellsworth is known for residents who get involved. Large lobbies and study rooms encourage resident interaction. A Macintosh computer lab, with direct access to the World Wide Web, and free e-mail encourage residents to use technology.
All-female Lewis Hall and allmale Templin Hall share many activities. The two residence halls annually sponsor BLT (Both Lewis and Templin) events like "My-Tie" dance and the Templin casino party. According to "Living at KU," Both Lewis and Templin tend to have culturally and internationally diverse populations.
Nestled in the heart of sports territory on Naismith Drive, Oliver Hall attracts the athletically inclined. Residents of Oliver Hall enjoy a strong sense of belonging that often draws them back even after graduation, KU brochures say. Also, residents' meals are served at a dining center within the hall.
All-female Gertrude Sellars Pearson (GSP) and Corbin are considered a single residential unit. Catering to women, the halls sponsor Women's Week, aerobics
groups, self-defense seminars and a more specific guest policy.
Making connections
Not only do residence halls create a niche through facilities and programs, but also through special communities within the halls. The communities help define small groups of residents that create a feeling of belonging. Programs range from the Spanish floor in McCollum Hall to "quiet" floors in Lewis and Templin.
The Ellsworth 3E program, "Experience Excellence in Ellsworth," convinced John Schneiderwind, an Omaha, Neb., freshman, that Ellsworth was the residence hall for him.
"I'm from out of state and I thought the 3E program was great, 'Schneiderwind said. "I feel like I've made better friends than I would have on a regular floor."
Stoner said that meeting people and making friends are the main attractions to residence hall living.
"I think everyone should stay in a dorm for a semester or two," said Tim Hansen, Lenexa freshman and Ellsworth Hall resident. "You meet so many people. I want to stay here next year."
Part of choosing a residence hall is choosing one that is allmale, all-female or mixed. In McCollum, Ellsworth and Hasinger halls, women occupy one wing of a floor and men the other. Oliver Hall separates men and women by floors.
Adam King, a Manhattan freshman who lives in McCollum Hall, said that he has met a wider variety of people by living in a mixed residence hall.
"Coed dorms are right on," King said. "Every male needs interaction with females. I've met quite a few girls."
Jean Katt, an Alma freshman who lives in the all-female Lewis Hall, said that her residence hall was cleaner and quieter without male residents.
"I don't know if I really miss meeting guys," Katt said. "You just have to choose between quiet and cleanliness or guys."
ages, according to "Living at KU." Housing director Stoner said it is necessary for students to live in a residence hall the first year of college to promote better academic habits.
"If you don't live in a residence hall your first year, you could isolate yourself, and it's easier to cut class than go," Stoner said. "Then all of a sudden, you've missed your freshman year."
Learning to share
Residence hall freshmen not only must deal with academic stress, but with the stress of adjusting to a new roommate. Stoner said that the American family unit has changed since the 1950s and 1960s. Today, many families have children with their own bedrooms and bathrooms.
Stoner said the best way to adjust to sharing a room is to have confidence in yourself and to just be friendly. However, as the family has changed, so have
the residence halls, More students have begun requesting single rooms.
"It's a necessity to have a single room," said Catherine Hodges, Mulvane freshman and Lewis Hall resident. "You have more space, you can put things where you want and you can decorate how you want."
Eating cafeteria food was another necessity for hall residents, Tim Davidson, an Emporia junior and Hashinger Hall resident, liked eating the variety of foods at Ekdahl Dining Commons, better known as Mrs. E's.
Although a balanced meal is essential to residence hall survival, it is not the most important thing.
"I love it," Davidson said. "Wow! I don't have to cook and clean, and I can get a balanced meal."
"Fit is the most important thing," Stoner said. "Once you find your fit, you can go anywhere."
WHERE TO LIVE
McCollum Hall, 1800 Engel Rd., 950 residents, male or female by wing; Special Communities: Honors Program (HRP), Hispanic Cultural Interest Floor and Graduate Floor
Hashinger Hall, 1632 Engel Rd., 320 residents, male or female by wing; Center for the Creative Arts
Ellsworth Hall. 1734 Engel Rd., 650 residents, male or female by wing; Special Communities: 3E (Experience Excellence in Ellsworth).
Lewis Hall, 1530 Engel Rd., 420 residents; women; Special Communities: graduate or quiet floors
Templin Hall, 1515 Engel Rd., 420 residents, men; Special Communities: graduate or quiet floors
Oliver Hall, 1815 Naismith Dr., 650 residents, male or female by floor
Gertrude Sellards Pearson (GSP), 500 W. 11th, 430 residents, women
Corbin Hall, 420 W. 11th, 320 residents, women.