Resident Life and Housing Services officials held meetings with residents in Few Quadrangle this week to outline and discuss the Few Quad renovation that is set to begin May 12, 2008, and finish before Spring 2009.
The presentations by RLHS officials and questions from students centered on what will happen to selective living groups being forced out next fall. It also addressed the questions of graduating seniors in Few, who will have to move out of their rooms earlier than other seniors.
The decision to renovate Few Quad, though, is still awaiting Board of Trustees' approval. The Board's next meeting is at the end of this month, and RLHS officials said they expect the Board to approve the project, said Deb LoBiondo, assistant dean for residence life on West Campus.
"We're 99.9 percent sure the Board will give the go-ahead to the project," LoBiondo said at a Thursday night general-information session for all Few Quad residents.
Although Crowell and Craven quadrangles were originally slated to be renovated first, Few Quad was bumped ahead because of mold concerns in the building and fears that the more than 50-year-old air-conditioning system would cause problems, LoBiondo said.
The renovation project also includes putting in new carpets and lighting, fixing bathrooms and adding a sprinkler system that meets fire department regulations.
The five selective living groups-Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, Kappa Alpha Order fraternity, Roundtable, Phi Delta fraternity, and Prism-currently located in Few Quad will have the opportunity to choose one of five housing alternatives for the 2008-2009 academic year. The options include disbanding for a year, housing on Central Campus, alternative housing on West or a combination of West and Central campuses housing.
"We're trying to keep within the general rules governing undergraduate housing-such as no selective living groups on the [Main West Quadrangle] and all sophomores being required to live on West," said Jen Frank, program coordinator for RLHS.
Selective living groups will not be able to return to Few Quad until Fall 2009, but renovations are slated to end by Spring 2009.
"The main reason behind this is we need to be realistic with a contingency plan in case the dorm isn't ready in time," LoBiondo said.
Although RLHS will try to meet each selective living group's needs, they may not be able to accommodate every request if it comes at the expense of treating non-affiliated residents unfairly, officials said.
Each group's needs will be prioritized depending on how well it scores on the Residential Group Assessment Committee report, a newly instated evaluation of selective living groups, officials added.
"After seeing the rankings, we'll work with them to fit to their size and find an appropriate section," Frank said.
All Few Quad residents will be required to move out by May 5-two days after the final-exam period and six days before the graduation ceremonies-so that RLHS can completely clear out the quad by the time the project is set to start.
Graduating seniors will have the option of either living in Bell Tower Dormitory on East Campus or rooming with a friend until graduation May 11. RLHS officials added that they will help seniors in need of storage spaces during the interim period.
One junior attended the general information session, and two seniors attended the meeting for seniors Thursday night.
RLHS officials said the other meetings held Monday and Wednesday nights, especially the selective-living-group meetings earlier in the week, have been averaging around eight to 10 students in attendance.
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