Despite being removed from other first-year students, freshmen in Residential College are showing no signs of disadvantage after nearly two semesters at Butler University.

On Aug. 31, The Collegian published an article checking in on first-year students in the freshman unit of ResCo to compare their social experience with freshmen living in other residence halls during the beginning of the fall semester.

Now after nearly a full year at Butler, both groups of students seem to be equally involved.

“I think they’re starting to get their wings,” said Emily Welch, a sophomore history and anthropology major and resident assistant for the freshman unit in ResCo. “They’ve made friends, they’re more comfortable, they know campus, they know how classes work. They’ve gotten into the Butler groove.”

Despite being isolated from freshmen in other residence halls, freshmen living in ResCo said they don’t feel less involved than their peers.

“I’m pretty evenly involved as other people,” said Olivia Wolfe, a freshman international studies and Spanish major, said. “I feel like I have the same amount of things as other people.”

Many of the freshmen said Greek recruitment was a great way for them to connect with other students.

“[My roommate] and I went to rush week, and that really helped us meet a lot of people,” freshman business major Steven Gianakas said.

After two semesters of getting to know each other, some freshmen said they enjoyed the “close-knit” atmosphere more, while others said they would have preferred to be around more people in the other residence halls.

“We do have a much closer family here and closer connections with people,” Wolfe said. “I like having the few closer relationships than knowing everyone in my hallway and not having as many close ones.”

Other students feel like this semester has been better than the first.

“Definitely first semester I would have rather been in Ross,”  said freshman Daniel Young, an actuarial science and finance major. “Second semester is neutral, because the pros even out the cons.”

More students said the experience can be as good as the students make it.

“I feel like you get close bonds wherever you live; it’s just how much time you spend with people,” Gianakas said.

For freshman pharmacy major Trevor Phenis, living in Ross made him more comfortable with dorm life.

“Initially I was nervous about moving into the dorms and having to meet new people,” he said in an email.

“[Living in Ross] has allowed me to see things from another point of view.”

Passing out door stops to prop doors open was one way Welch encouraged a community atmosphere, she said.

“[Having doorstops] is helping people overcome a real structural barrier to building intimacy,” assistant professor of psychology Alison O’Malley said. “It’s a way to quickly establish common ground, common affiliations, information you don’t get with a closed door.”

The interaction between individual factors and the environment affects how students thrive in a situation like the freshmen in ResCo are experiencing, O’Malley said.

The way ResCo is designed may pose no barrier to an extroverted student, but more introverted students must put forth extra energy, she said.

Welch said programming challenges have changed with the semester.

“First semester a lot of the programming was around ‘Let’s do big group stuff and get to know each other,’” she said. “Second semester it’s more trying to get it planned around their other activities.”

Welch said first semester she felt it was important to push her residents into going to events and connecting, but said she knows now they can find some of those avenues for themselves.

The Diversity Center held its first student-organized Mardi Gras celebration on Feb. 21 in the Residential College dining room.

The event featured Butler University’s Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Matt Pivec, assistant director of music, Cajun cuisine provided by Yats, psychic readings and a Mardi Gras Faux Floats contest.

Bobbie Gibson, assistant director of the Diversity Center, said the budget could only accommodate 80 people initially, but that number was expanded to 200 when Residence Life made the event its annual “All Hall” Celebration.

“At the end of the evening, we served 310 meals,” Gibson said, “though I don’t think that is representative of how many people came through.”

The Diversity Center Council, or DC2, received a grant from REACH to help fund the event, UnoBlessed Coons, vice president of diversity programming for R.E.A.C.H., said.

In addition, Gibson said $200 was contributed to DC2 from the budgets of each Diversity Center organization. Three organizations’ balances did not have a sufficient balance to donate the full $200, so a lesser amount was given instead.

In an email sent to those organizations, Gibson said she “would never put the organization in jeopardy of being inactive” and also did not want to prevent them from participating.

“I think we got our money’s worth,” Colleen Quilty, sophomore gender, women and sexuality studies major and president of Demia, said. “It was an overwhelming success.”

Though this is DC2’s first year celebrating Mardi Gras, Gibson said she hopes it will become an annual event.

“We are planning on making things more efficient and more organized so everything goes more smoothly next year,” Erika Ocampo, freshman pharmacy and Spanish major and DC2 member, said. “We could try to expand it to Greek life.”

Gibson said it was great to see what could be done with so many organizations collaborating and was happy to see people connecting and becoming friends.

“It was a learning experience for them, and it was a learning experience for me,” she said. “But I wanted it to be their project. I wanted it to be their success. It exceeded my wildest expectations.”

Ocampo said the group worked well together and made Mardi Gras happen.

“It was good because it taught everyone to take the initiative to be more involved on campus and to expand diversity,” she said.

The International Student Services Office is making plans for an international living unit next semester in ResCo, according to the office’s associate director.

The unit would potentially feature 20 international students and 20 domestic students and the hope is that this arrangement will better integrate international students into the Butler culture.

“I feel peers have the ability to introduce them into the Butler culture,” Hillary Zorman, associate director of international student services, said. “The staff can only do so much.”

International students would live with a domestic student to better help the integration process.

“Roommates are key in the process,” Zorman said. “[Domestic students] have friends they can introduce them to and help them feel they are a part of the Butler community.”

International and domestic students would be spread throughout the wing, Zorman said.

“We don’t want to isolate international students,” Zorman said. “We want a mix of domestic and international students.”

The unit’s existence depends upon the willingness of domestic students to volunteer to be a part of it. Zorman said she believes this will not be an issue, judging from the amount of students who participated in Diversity Ambassadors for the International Orientation earlier this year.

Zorman said she hopes the new wing will take root in ResCo and then possibly spread to other places on campus like the Apartment Village.

“I hope it is here forever and we can expand it through campus,” she said.

Freshman Stephen Rooney, who is currently rooming with freshman Sam O’Neill, a student from New Zealand, said he encourages others to volunteer to room with international students.

Graphic by Hayleigh Colombo

“You’re going to get a good experience with it,” Rooney said. “You’ll learn a lot about places in the world that you’ve never been and you’ll probably never get a chance to visit.”

In addition to living in New Zealand, O’Neill has also lived in Germany, Australia and Indonesia.

Freshman Brennan Walker’s living experience with an international student is different from Rooney’s due to a language barrier. Walker’s roommate, Manuel Baldizon, is from Guatemala.

“The language barrier is difficult, but it’s something you can get around very easily,” Walker said.

Walker said he feels his experience has taught him how to interact with people with different backgrounds.

“Being at Butler, you get a lot of people with the same backgrounds,” Walker said. “Manuel told me about how things here are different than living there. It’s pretty cool to learn about all the other things that happen in different cultures.”

International students help add to the diversity and Butler experience, Zoman said.

“International students are incredible people with incredible stories,” Zorman said. “The diversity they can provide is good for Butler University.

She also said she believes both international students and domestic students benefit from the international experience.

“The international student isn’t the only one gaining from our culture,” Zorman said, “but [domestic students and Butler] gain as well.”

The retention rates at Butler University have been consistent over the years, but the university is looking to bring them closer to 100 percent.

Right now, Butler’s average retention from first to second year is 88 percent.

“If you don’t retain students there, they won’t be there for their junior year,” Associate Provost Mary Macmanus Ramsbottom said.

Ramsbottom said the university is losing people in the middle, so academic student affairs, admissions and student affairs are looking more closely at the year in between to find out why these students are leaving.

Student affairs and academic student affairs are now reaching out to first-generation college students who may not have the same sense of communication with their parents about values toward college.

They have planned events throughout the school year to get these students involved at the university and to create connections with faculty and other students that will help make the students feel comfortable.

Ramsbottom said if a connection is made with these students, they are more likely to end up staying all four to six years at the university.

Tom Weede, vice president for enrollment management, pointed out a few reasons why students would leave: wanting to be closer to family, a boyfriend or girlfriend; financial aid; or to seek certain programs or majors.

“People failing out is not a huge issue,” he said. “People here have the potential to be successful.”

The Learning Resource Center and student affairs meet with students who leave and have them take a survey about why they leave.

This helps the university study why students choose to depart and what the school can do to keep more students at Butler.

“If there is a solvable problem, we try to do that,” said Weede.

From what the surveys have shown, academics are not usually an issue.

Ramsbottom said the school studies what helps students adapt to the environment of the school and what helps students stay here longer.

A sense of belonging, a connection with faculty and other students, and one-on-one advising are a few factors that help students become comfortable at Butler.

However, some students don’t make these connections or get that sense of belonging, so they decide to leave the university.  There are a few impacts that this has on the university.

“It actually costs less to keep a student than it does finding a student to replace them,” said Weede. “The university loses money and people lose friends when a student leaves.”

When students do leave, living arrangements change in the residence halls.

Jeff Tyner, Residence Life Coordinator for Residential College, said that the remaining roommate is the key concern because they have to go through the whole process of learning about a new roommate again.

The RAs keep an eye on the incoming students to make sure they settle in and become comfortable in their new living environment.

On average, about 15 to 25 students come in and leave ResCo between semesters.

While that number could be lower, Ramsbottom said the current rates show students are fairly satisfied.

“The retention rates are good, so that is a good indicator of [student] satisfaction and finding the right fit,” she said.

Students looking to escape the crowd in Residential College during lunch hours can now purchase to-go containers.

Dining Services added the option to purchase a reusable to-go container during lunch and breakfast hours at ResCo.

After students make their first purchase of the container, which costs $5, they return their rinsed container and swap it out for a sanitized one for another trip.

Talks to add this option began at the end of last year as a result of student input on needing a grab-and-go option, and the to-go boxes became available around the first week of September, Stacey Puck, director of dining services, said.

Nicolle von Helms, a freshman voice major, said this option could be very helpful.

She had not heard of the new option but will consider using it in the future.

“I don’t have lunch breaks at all on Mondays,” von Helms said. “I think it’s a good idea to have a way to get energy to make it through all your classes.”

Teri Clay, an Aramark employee, said that this was added to the dining options to reduce the carbon footprint, since the containers are BPA-free and reusable.

The ResCo dining room gets quite busy and packed around noon.

In an article about the “lunch crunch” from the Sept. 29, 2010 issue of The Butler Collegian, Puck said that ResCo serves 380 students before 12:15 p.m. on its busiest serving days.

Puck said that since ResCo does get busy, this new option provides convenience for students who may just have time to grab their food and go.

“[With this service] students can take their food back to their room or to study,” Jack London, ResCo sous chef, said.

London hosted a “Sustainable Day” in ResCo on Oct. 26, where 20 to-go containers were handed out to students.

“We awarded the students who treat the employees respectfully or who always seem super happy,” London said.

London said this new addition has been pretty slow taking off, but it will pick up as people learn more about it.

“I think it will be successful, because it might be useful for people who may not have time to eat [in the dining halls],” freshman pre-physician assistant major Claire Fullenkamp said.

Fullenkamp said that she would use this option if she needed to.

Dining services initially ordered 290 to-go containers but will get more if needed.

Clay and London are also looking into giving to-go containers to faculty and staff.

For information regarding this new dining option, contact London or any other staff member in ResCo during breakfast or lunch hours.

The daily cleaning of every dormitory bathroom is only one responsibility of Butler University’s housekeeping staff.

Richard Hamm, director of building services, works closely with his supervisors, Augusto Acosta and Jenny Roell, to try to keep the residence halls as clean and sanitary as possible.

Acosta supervises Ross Hall, Residential College and the Apartment Village, and Roell is supervisor for Schwitzer Hall and University Terrace.

Hamm said there are typically 16 staff members working each day during the week who are responsible for cleaning the public bathrooms of the residence halls daily, as well as performing weekly sanitary procedures for things like doorknobs, handrails and other frequently touched surfaces throughout the buildings.

Water is considered housekeeping’s biggest problem because even after standing water is cleaned up, it can often cause mold, mildew or electrical issues in places unseen, Acosta said.

“Water is our biggest enemy,” Hamm said. “Communication is our biggest friend.”

Hamm said that this is one reason that communication is so important because reporting these sorts of incidents immediately can help reduce the likelihood of a situation worsening.

Hamm said the main thing that residents can do to help housekeeping address issues promptly and appropriately is to make sure they communicate with their resident assistant when they see problem areas.

Even with the staff’s effort, some students said they think the bathrooms could still be cleaner.

Renee Mommaerts, a freshman psychology and pre-med major, said that the showers always seem very dirty.

“There are hairballs everywhere,” she said.

Phil Dwyer, a freshman computer science major, said he heard of an incident when someone put a trash can in one of Ross Hall’s showers and another incident involving someone vomiting in the shower area.

“Monday mornings are rough,” Hamm said.

When breakouts are reported, such as the H1N1 virus two years ago, these procedures are performed more frequently to minimize the spread of infection.

Acosta said that the products housekeeping uses to clean and sanitize are designed to be cleaner and safer, using completely green products excluding when it does deep cleaning over the summer.

During extended breaks, such as the upcoming fall break, scheduled maintenances are done as needed. The summer is spent prepping the dorms for Welcome Week, and winter break is designated for more time-consuming projects, like carpet cleaning and stripping and waxing of floors.

While staff focuses on common areas, the main issue of the housekeeping staff is recycling and waste removal. Butler received a $25,000 grant from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management in 2007. Hamm said that this allowed housekeeping to improve the quality of recycling stations and management without assuming any additional labor costs.

Hamm also said that the staff handles around six pickup loads of trash for a single weekend, and the housekeeping staff is usually only about three members on weekends, when all it does is handle garbage removal.

When vandalism occurs over the weekend, it normally isn’t dealt with until the following Monday. Hamm said that if something does need to be reported immediately, residents can call Butler University Police Department’s dispatcher, who is available all the time and can then contact Roell and inform her of the situation.

Hamm said he is pleased with much-needed upgrades addressed in Butler’s Master Plan, such as additional dorm space and refurbishing, which will help improve housekeeping’s effectiveness.

Housing on Butler University’s campus needs an upgrade. Ranging from the silverfish in Schwitzer Hall, the dilapidated state of Ross Hall and the undeniably loud water heaters for the showers in Residential College, a little bit of improvement would go a long way.

Freshman definitely get the shortest end of the stick when it comes to housing at Butler.

President Jim Danko mentioned during his address to members of Student Government Association Assembly in the Oct. 5 meeting that he wants to improve the condition of housing on Butler’s campus, and I couldn’t agree more.

Sure, there is a certain charm to old housing. It has a homey feel and the idea that so much history happened within it.

It has its drawbacks, though.

Ask anyone who has lived in Schwitzer in the past few years.

It is my hope that President Danko takes the initiative to repair our residence halls. They don’t need to be torn down and rebuilt in a fashion so modern that the Jetsons would be confused, but they do need to be better maintained.

After all, living in less glamorous conditions makes students that much more grateful when they get to live in a nice apartment, or rent a swanky house.

When students look back on their dormitory days, they shouldn’t be appalled at the dilapidated quality of the buildings they once called home, even if only for a short period of time.

“I remember on one of my first tours, I walked into one of the dorms that was built in the 50s and I quickly realized that I was also built in the  50s,” Danko said at SGA. “I know I need to be worked on every now and then.”

If Schwitzer, Ross and ResCo were improved in even the slightest capacity, it would greatly improve the living experience for underclassmen at Butler.

Freshman and sophomore residence halls aren’t designed to be glamorous and, frankly, I don’t expect them to be. What I do expect is that the quality of life in freshman residence halls becomes a bit better. Sinks in Schwitzer should not back up when used too often, and the showers should provide a consistent temperature instead of being either toe-numbingly cold or scalding hot.

While living in the Apartment Village, it is strange to think back through my residence hall days. I’ve lived in Schwitzer, with its occasional silverfish sightings and shoddy bathrooms, then ResCo, with its convenient, yet unpredictable elevator, slightly bigger rooms and disturbingly small showers. Now I’m living in the Apartment Village, which has private rooms, a pantry and a shower that can double as a bathtub if I so desire.

The prospect of better residence halls for freshmen is exciting, even if I won’t get to experience the benefits.

Perhaps a new president can bring the kind of architectural change this university has needed for years.

Freshman students arrive at college eager to find a social footing. But an increasing number of freshmen living in Residential College may feel like they are left out of that experience.

The isolated location of their units from other freshman makes for  different experience than living in Ross Hall or Schwitzer Hall first- year ResCo residents said.

“First-year students want to get to meet as many people as possible, and that does not change between residence halls,” Cunningham said. “Students in ResCo just have to work a little harder.”

Because of the different circumstances, more pressure is put on the resident assistants to plan programs and events that get freshmen out and involved with other students.

ResCo Residence Life Coordinator Jeff Tyner said the situation “poses challenges for RAs,” adding that ResCo allows students to form more “close knit relationships.”

“It is important for RAs and their RLC to schedule programming,” said Karla Cunningham, director of residence life.

The number of freshmen in ResCo has fluctuated in recent years.

Last year, as Butler accepted its largest freshman class in university history, ResCo had between 80 and 90 first year students spread among the wings, making communication difficult to accomplish.

Freshman Steven Gianakas, a business major, said he feels socially limited living in Resco. Daniel Young, a freshman actuarial science and finance major said he agrees with Gianakas’ sentiment.

This year, with a smaller freshman class, the numbers have adjusted accordingly with about 40 first year students living in ResCo, all located in one unit.
This consolidation brings freshmen closer together.

“The freshman hall has their doors open a lot,” freshman arts administration major Mollie Ellis said. “I will see a door right across the hall open, know it is a freshman room and that is the first place I will go.”

In ResCo, the fire retardant doors automatically swing shut as a safety precaution, which contrasts the “open door” policy popular in Ross and Schwitzer.

In fact, it is common to pass through an entire upperclassman wing in ResCo without encountering a single open door.

But to prevent a disconnect between residents in the hall, students are able to keep doors open at all times at ResCo as per policy. Freshman ResCo residents said being allowed to keep doors open makes them feel closer to one another.

While not provided by residence life, students in ResCo are able to purchase door stops or use another object to keep their doors open, granted it does not cause damage to the door or the floor.

“It is a building code difference that indirectly affects the community,” Tyner said. “Most people like the privacy.”

Even with the closed doors, some freshmen find that living in Resco improves their social life tremendously.

“You make closer friends [here] instead of acquaintances,” first year pharmacy major Andrew Taschler said of living in ResCo compared to Ross or Schwitzer. “Size makes a difference.”

Freshman and Ross Hall resident Jacob Ready prefers seeing a larger pool of names and faces.

“Having an open door is a great way to meet people and strike up a conversation,” Ready said.

‘Writing on the doors is important since the doors are not always open,” said Emily Welch, RA for the freshman unit.

Welch passed out door stops to all of her residents and encouraged those who wanted more social activity to prop their doors open.

Butler University Dining Services has made efforts to adjust to the larger student body on campus.

Students who eat at Residential College’s Dining Room might have noticed changes in the number of seats available during the lunch hours.

Food Service Director Stacy Puck said dining services has added 70 addtional chairs to accomodate the large lunch crowd.

The dining hall can now hold 330 people at any given time, as opposed to the previous 260.

While adding more chairs and rearranging tables has helped a little with the wait time for students, Puck said the volume of students has not changed.

“We serve 380 students before 12:15 on some days,” Puck said.

Previously, students would dine outside in the lobby if there was no room inside, but this is no longer allowed.

Puck said these new enforcements are natural and keep the dining halls safer.

When it comes to which dining hall is being frequented most often, ResCo or Atherton, Puck says that, according to the statistics, traffic has stayed pretty constant between the two.

She recommends that students find the most convenient time to eat to minimize overcrowding at peak times during the day.

Students are encouraged to avoid the lunch rush from 12-12:30 p.m. everyday, but especially on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Following the first few weeks of school, students often figure this out themselves and the large crowds usually let up, she said.

Most students will often fluctuate between the two dining halls that are open for lunch depending on what is on the menu that day or their schedules.

However, many students, like sophomore Kelly Hunter, simply prefer one dining option over the other.

“The food at ResCo is just better,” Hunter said.

Junior Maureen Bamiro said Atherton Marketplace has made improvements in their menu options.

“I think Atherton is making a good effort,” she said.

Even though major changes haven’t been necessary, dining services has seen some slight changes in the way things are being done.

“Over the prior year, it’s comparable,” said Puck of the traffic that the dining halls have been seeing.

In an e-mail from dining services, students were encouraged to try and contribute to “easing the lunch crunch.”

To maximize the seating at each table, students should share tables, the e-mail said.

Students were also advised to take conversations out to the lobby to free up some space and to eat at Atherton Marketplace when the line stretches out into the lobby.

Both dining halls are open for lunch 11:00 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

DO THE BUSTLE: Butler University Dining Services has added 70 chairs to adjust to the bustle during lunchtime at Residential College's Dining Room. Last week, a campus-wide email was sent out to encourage students to help fix the overcrowding during peak hours.

After my EN 185 class at 11 a.m., I make my way towards ResCo to put my bag in my room and to eat lunch.

But, when I make my way down three flights of stairs and to the front of the cafeteria to eat, the line is stretched all the way past the front desk and snakes through the columns of the lobby.

At this point, I have to go to Atherton to eat.

The lines are shorter at Atherton, but as I walk into the cafeteria, every table is occupied, and at times, overflowing with too many people cramped around the tabletops.

I end up waiting in various lines for roughly 10 minutes to get an entrée and spend a few more minutes grabbing all my sides and my drink.

By the time I sit down and start eating with friends, it’s nearly a quarter to one.

This overflow, I believe, is caused by the massive freshmen class this year.

With 1,067 students, it makes sense that finding a place to eat my lunch in a timely fashion is one of the harder tasks I face  this year.

It is not the freshmen class’ fault that it takes me 30 minutes to get my lunch; they are just trying to get in and out like the rest of us.

I think that C-Club should start allowing meal exchanges during the lunch hour. According to Stacey Puck, director of food service, last week, “ResCo was at 670 [students] and it only has 273 seats.”

If meal exchanges were allowed, I think more students would use C-Club and therefore lessen the lines and crowds in both Atherton and ResCo.

I know some students do go to C-Club for lunch, but to purchase food, they have to use their flex dollars and because no meal exchanges are offered, lunch can end up being very expensive.

Puck said C-Club does not accept meal exchanges during lunch because, “[the large] amount of commuters we serve during dinner and also, the meal plans aren’t set up for a meal exchange at lunch time.”

If a student used flex dollars at C-Club every day for lunch, their flex dollars wouldn’t last them more than a month.

Meal exchanges would be helpful during lunch due to the fair amount of seating in C-Club. It would help eliminate lines and long waits for all students because everyone would be spread out more evenly thoughout the different dining halls.

My main qualm is that we have three dining areas on campus and with such a large incoming class I think we need to use these dining accommodations to the fullest, especially when the lunch rush is the biggest problem.

Using all three dining halls during lunch would help everyone be able to get in and get out, without worrying about being late to class.

Also, in Atherton and ResCo, perhaps more tables would help, rather than re-arranged tables.

A second dining services worker to scan ID cards in ResCo would help expedite the eating process even more.

For the given situation, I think that dining services is doing a great job keeping up with the large volume of students, but improvements are necessary.

The amount of students coming in as freshmen in the following years will most likely continue to grow due to the large amount of publicity we received from the basketball team during March Madness. Therefore, long term changes need to be implemented to help everyone’s dining experience.

In response to this year’s record-breaking freshman class, Puck said that dining services were ready. “We increased labor and C-Club added a third register,” she said. “Supervisors are also available on the floor if someone has questions.”

If meal exchanges were permitted in C-Club during the lunch hour, it would help reduce the lines in both ResCo and Atherton and provide students with ‘grab and go’ convenience if they had classes immediately following lunch.

However, there is hope.

Puck said, “The first week is always like this.”

She said by next week, lunch should  be back to normal size.