Dear Board of Trustees,
It is my understanding that when you convene near the end of September you will decide the fate of the proposed renovation to Few Quadrangle during the fall 2008 semester. If you really care about the student body-as we are so often told-then please, in the name of all that is holy and just, reject this plan.
Let me disclose: As a senior who lives off campus, the Few renovation does not affect me whatsoever. But this is true of all you as well, except that you sit on the most powerful decision-making body at Duke; you are thus obligated to be interested. As a concerned student attempting to speak truth to power, I write in the hope of informing your opinion.
Spending $20 million to upgrade the Few dormitories is a wasteful and inefficient use of precious University resources. Below you will find four factors that incline against the logic of this plan, and I urge you to consider them seriously.
(1) It will displace 438 students from West Campus. Closing Few for the fall semester will force the 438 students who would otherwise have lived there to find other housing options. Because space on West is limited and because sophomores are guaranteed housing on West, this means that 438 juniors and seniors will be forced to live on Central Campus or off-campus. Regardless of whether you believe that Central is an acceptable alternative to West, you must also recognize that those students would have chosen to live on West over Central and that you would be, in effect, making their housing decisions for them.
(2) It will destroy five selective living groups. The renovation process will essentially dissolve the three fraternities and two selective living organizations that currently reside in Few. There is no arrangement on West Campus in which all-or even most-of these students could live together and have communal space to themselves in a similar fashion to their current situation. It is also a doubtful prospect on Central, given that campus' real estate realities.
You might be thinking that nicer facilities after the renovations would probably outweigh the temporary disadvantages to living apart. But if this is a compelling reason to support the plan, then shouldn't you allow those groups to make that decision themselves?
It strikes me as awfully paternalistic-and frankly unbecoming of one of the world's most elite educational institutions-to impose costs on students simply because you claim it is in their long-run best interest. I'm sure you realize the message this sends: that very smart young adults are not mature enough to decide what's best on their own. So if this is your reasoning, then let those five student groups vote or decide before you vote.
(3) It violates the regular rotation of quadrangle remodeling. Few is one of the most recently-renovated dorms on campus, having been remodeled in 2004. Normally, Residence Life and Housing Services would alternate among dorms when deciding which to renovate by looking at relevant criteria, but this proposal would grant Few two renovations in four years. Craven and Crowell quads, for example, have not been renovated in quite some time, and if this plan is approved, these dorms will continue to deteriorate-as dates for their renovations have not yet been established.
(4) It is not the most deserving candidate for upgrades. Few already has air conditioning, a luxury that quads like Craven and Crowell do not currently enjoy. Nevertheless, RLHS has decided to spend a substantial sum of money to upgrade Few's HVAC system to eliminate "elevated" levels of mold instead of installing air conditioning in dorms that currently live without it. Deep down, does that really seem fair to you?
Moreover, Few is in much better shape than these other dorms. Craven and Crowell have ailing bathrooms, aging amenities and furniture and are in constant need of repair, but Few's facilities are, comparatively, in excellent condition. I speak from two years' experience living on West Campus; before you make this decision, I suggest you tour the dorms to get a real sense of the relative necessity of upgrading Few Quadrangle.
Duke is a wonderful place, and the experience of living on West Campus is an integral part of our community's success. This proposal, however, will ruin that experience for 438 students, and it will increasingly diminish the likelihood of relief for students who currently live in dorms that desperately need an upgrade.
I sincerely hope you will carefully consider this decision.
Jon Detzel is a Trinity senior. His column runs every other Tuesday.
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