Residence halls hit capacity

When they pull up with vehicles stuffed to the brim with boxes, bags and bedding, most freshman expect to have a room to move into. When residence halls reach full capacity, those room assignments are not guaranteed.

This year the University of Wyoming residence halls have already hit and exceeded capacity. They are currently at 102 percent capacity, said Eric Webb, executive director of Residence Life & Dining Services.

            “We are just a hair overbooked,” Webb said.

Just as airlines overbook flights counting on a certain number of passengers to not show up, Residence Life & Dining assigns rooms counting on a percentage of students not to make an appearance on move-in day. Whether they choose another university or change their minds about attending college entirely, a number of students each year fail to show up and claim their assigned room.

This gamble doesn’t always pan out. This year the number of freshmen moving into the residence halls outpaced room assignments in all four halls, McIntyre, Downey, White and Orr. About 40 students have temporarily moved in with their floor resident assistants.

As spaces open up and Residence Life & Dining confirms no-shows, these students will be able to move into double rooms with other freshmen.

The residence halls have not exceeded capacity since the 1980s, Webb said. They have this year because the freshman class size has increased even as the number of sophomores and upperclassmen living in the residence halls has decreased. The university’s live-in requirement for freshmen means growing numbers of students must be accommodated each year.

Although inconvenient for the small pool of students who have to room with their RAs, in Webb’s view 2 percent overflow is a minor issue that can be accommodated within the halls by assigning RAs roommates.

“We think for this year we’re in great shape,” Webb said. “For future years we’re really going to have to have to come up with another plan.”

Crane Hall and Hill Hall, which are gutted in preparation for demolition as part of a plan to replace them with apartments or suite-style residence halls, were not available for overflow.

“We’re keeping those empty. They need a lot of upgrades, so they are offline right now,” Webb said.

Other universities are forced to take more drastic measures when residence halls hit capacity. According to the The Rocky Mountain (Fort Collins) Collegian, Colorado State University is grappling with over-capacity as the largest-ever freshman class moves in this year. Over 100 students have been housed in hall lounges and basements until they can be moved to permanent housing. CSU also requires freshmen to live on campus their first year.