Wednesday, May 27, 1998
Students will return to cramped quarters this fall
ADMISSIONS: Campus housing tries to keep up with growing
numbers
By Lawrence Ferchaw
Daily Bruin Contributor
When the record number of freshmen enrolling at UCLA arrive in
the fall, the 6,200 freshmen and returning students estimated to
request on-campus housing will be put into housing that holds less
than 5,800.
The 4,267 students who have sent in letters of intent to
register are all eligible for on-campus housing. Officials are not
yet sure how many of these will decide to live on campus, however
last year, 90 percent of freshman admits opted to live on
campus.
"We were trying for a class of 3,850," said Tom Lifka, assistant
vice chancellor of student affairs. He pointed out that to get this
number, administrators needed about 4,000 students to send in
letters of intent to register since 4 percent of those students are
likely to change their minds over the summer.
"We’re likely to be 250 students over," Lifka added.
This large number of incoming students, coupled with more
returning residents, puts a strain on the already crowded residence
halls.
The addition of De Neve Plaza, scheduled to be partially
completed in Fall 1999, will make room for 850 more students.
"(De Neve) is coming on line at a good time," said Frank
Montana, manager of housing services, of the residence complex
which will not ease overcrowding until 1999.
To deal with the overcrowding this fall, housing officials have
discussed plans and placing students in the lounges has been
removed from that list; still on that list is tripling
students.
"The policy review board (a residence hall advisory body)
recommended that we create more triple spaces instead of housing
them in lounges," Montana said.
While housing officials accommodated 5,756 students this year,
they can still make more room by creating more three-person rooms.
They have not yet determined how many spaces they will need.
"It’s hard to predict. The only thing we have are applications,"
Montana said.
"We may get a lower take rate; some students may not want a
triple room," he continued.
This is similar to enrollment rates as well, where
administrators expect that 4 percent of students who sent in
letters of intent to register will change their minds.
The problem for next fall is similar to what happened this past
fall, when all students who requested on-campus housing could not
be immediately accommodated.
Some of these students were placed in the floor study lounges
until other housing became available. For many, this was only a
temporary stay.
Egal Shahbaz, a second-year student, lived in a Dykstra study
lounge for two days before moving into a double in the same
building.
As a second-year student, Shahbaz was guaranteed housing, but he
missed a payment so he lost his priority.
As a way to deal with increased demand, Housing Administration
for the past 10 years has been converting residence hall rooms,
originally designed for two people to hold three people.
Housing Administration also plans to utilize former sorority
houses and university apartments for housing.
Housing Administration will have to deal with this increased
demand without Hershey Hall, which closes at the end of this school
year.
"Students got squeezed out," said Andrew Westall, GSA president
referring to Hershey Hall, which will be used for staff offices
when Haines and Kinsey Halls undergo seismic renovations.
Hershey has historically housed graduate students, as well as
disabled students for whom living up on the hill, where the other
residence halls are, is difficult. Hershey has also accommodated
transfer students.
The majority of the graduate students will live at the
university apartments on Venice. Housing Administration has also
leased one to two more sorority houses on Hilgard to house transfer
students, according to Westall.
While Hershey will no longer be available, De Neve Plaza, when
completed in January 2000, will hold an additional 414
students.
Not only does Housing Administration have to deal with more
entering freshman, but Lifka pointed out that many of the
upperclassmen do not want to leave, which creates a problem trying
to accommodate everyone.
This year, 2,600 returning students signed up for housing. Of
those, 2,400, signed contracts; this is an increase of 150 over
last year.
The construction of De Neve is the result of the rising numbers
of students wanting to live on campus.
"We can’t seem to build housing fast enough," Lifka said.