Upperclassmen dorm is a good thing

By Online Editor

The planning and potential implementation of a new residential hall for upperclassmen is a good move on the part of Missouri Western.

The current plan consists of a suite with four individual rooms connected by a common area with a kitchenette.

This may or may not bring back the upperclassmen but it is a good progression to attract them.

Housing’s first attempt to bring back the upperclassmen was the “conversion” of Beshears Hall, a suite style dorm, in to an upperclassmen residential hall.

That “conversion” consisted of repurposing the rooms and saying that they are single student rooms.

There are still two beds, two desks and two closets in case Housing wants to turn them back into two persons room.

These rooms were never meant to be a single room dorm room.

This “conversion” was a decent short-term fix to the issue of the upperclassmen housing but it was never a permanent solution.

What is planned for the new hall appears to address that problem, to some extent.

It is not a full-blown traditional apartment that would be expected like the ones at the Broadmoor apartments but it dies addresses to the upperclassmen’s needs better than the other residential halls on campus: a more traditional living style.

There is a problem with the current new residential hall design idea and that is the kitchenette.

In last week’s story about this, Vice President of Student Affairs Esther Peralez stated that the kitchenette would be limited so that it will not take away student away from the campus dining service.

This appeasing of the campus dining service does not serve the upperclassmen well.

By doing this, you force the upperclassmen to use the campus dining service when they may not want to.

Outside of the kitchenette issue, this residential hall is what is needed on campus as long as they remember who this is for and their needs.