Student Affairs administrators released the final housing lottery plan Thursday night, backing off an earlier proposal that would have split housing preferences between rising juniors and seniors. Rising seniors will have top choice for all housing next year.
Originally, Student Affairs intended to give juniors priority in choosing doubles and triples and seniors first choice of singles.
Bill Burig, assistant dean of student development, said the decision was made in response to student feedback from Duke Student Government and Campus Council.
"I'm very glad the administration was open to input on this issue," said senior Sean Young, DSG liaison for residential life.
Vik Devisetty, president of Campus Council, echoed that sentiment.
"I thought they were thoughtful decisions [that will] make the housing process more equitable for everyone involved," he said.
The plan includes several measures Burig said would end "manipulation" of the lottery system, including a strict no-cancellation contract policy for students who decide to move off campus after the housing lottery. The plan also prohibits rising sophomores from initially choosing upperclass students as roommates.
"Because sophomores are guaranteed to be somewhere on West Campus, if they had the opportunity to name juniors and seniors as roommates, [the juniors and seniors] would automatically be assigned to West Campus," Burig said.
Devisetty said those conditions were necessary but not ideal.
The plan allows for rising sophomores to change roommates after the selection process is complete. Burig said that currently there are few rising sophomores who request upperclass roommates, but his office will do its best to place those students together in a reassignment.
The plan also addressed concerns that rising juniors will be reassigned to a second year in Trent Drive Hall, noting that no student will be required to select a room in Trent. Burig said the three-year housing requirement would be waived for those students, and they will have the choice to live in Trent or off campus. The plan also provides that students with low lottery numbers who currently live in Trent and select space there for a second year, rather than moving off campus, will be given priority for reassignment either to West Campus or to Central Campus apartments.
Young said he doubted the plan fully addressed Trent residents' concerns and said that offering "insurance policies" for students would only discourage other students to live in Trent.
Burig said that within the next week or two he would announce the amenities offered to juniors and seniors who choose to live in singles in Trent.
Young suggested several measures--more furniture, free parking, providing a limited number of free air conditioner units and opening Grace's Cafe, a Chinese eatery in Trent, on Saturdays.
"A group of friends could potentially control an entire hall of Trent to themselves, with each member having a 200-square foot room all to themselves," Young said.
Locations of the linked houses will be announced in late February after the selective rush process. Each freshman will be able to live in a West Campus house with rooms specifically set aside to a linking East Campus house.
"We want the rush process to go along this year without locations being an influence in the rush process," Burig said, adding that housing officials also want to know how many students are interested in linked houses.
He also said he will cut the lottery window by about a week since all rooms will be chosen over a 10-day period.
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