Manhattan College gives incentive to stay on campus

By Kate Pastor

Samantha Kotch, a sophomore at Manhattan College, lives in a dorm on campus this year, but had hoped to move into her own apartment for her junior year.

That's no longer possible for her.

The college has sent out letters saying that, starting next fall, it will give 20 percent less financial assistance to every student who moves off campus.

Commuter students have always received smaller packages than their on-campus counterparts, and the student handbook has always contained a provision for decreasing aid if a student moves out of the dorms, says the school. But until now, the college gave students who slipped off campus a break.

Those days have come to an end, and Ms. Kotch is on the losing end of a battle to live, as she sees it, like a grownup.

"My mom wasn't so keen on getting an apartment anyway, but now it's completely out of the option," she said.

The reason she wants to move off campus is that there is a dearth of apartment-style housing on campus.

"For real upper-classman housing, you want an apartment with a kitchen and everything," she said.

One reason for the change in enforcement is the East Hill Residence Hall. Completed last fall, it can accommodate an additional 600 students, bringing the total on-campus living capacity to 2100, or nearly 80 percent of the student body. With the new digs, the college has very little reason not to enforce its rule, especially during a year it plans to give out more financial aid and raise tuition by 4 percent rather than its usual 6 percent, in an effort to keep the school affordable.

The college argues that oncampus housing also has a lot to offer. There are the planned activities, resident assistants to supervise and keep order, and security guards on site if anything should go wrong during the wee hours.

But that's exactly what some students are looking to get away from.

William Mauro, also a sophomore, said he also receives financial aid and had hoped to move off campus for more freedom.

"There's too many rules," he said, detailing how guests need to sign in and are forced to leave after a certain hour.

Now moving next year is "gonna be a struggle," he said.

According to Thomas Ryan, Manhattan College's vice president for finance, before the new dorm was built, the college rented out space in the nearby apartment buildings because only 1400 students could be housed on campus. Those contracts were terminated last June when the new building opened, he said. And there are still more than 400 vacancies in campus dorms.

So the college will no longer financially enable those who choose to move.

"The college gets hit a double whammy and the student makes out very well." said Mr. Ryan.

This is part of the April 23, 2009 online edition of The Riverdale Press.

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