Stop infantilizing us, Duke!
Despite being an elite university, Duke sure knows how to treat its students like children. The university mandates a longer housing requirement than its peer institutions, forcing us to live on campus for three years. This requirement infuriates me because Duke removes my power over where to live. Even though as a junior I can choose which dorm to live in, I am prevented from living off-campus in the name of creating a thriving campus community. This requirement traps us in a pseudo-boarding school environment. Duke takes care of our every need on campus, from dining to exercising to studying. Like boarding school students, we migrate between classes, the dining hall (WU), and our dorm rooms. In this, Duke’s ideal scenario, we never need to go off campus and instead rely on Duke for everything we need. There is even a campus pharmacy, after all!