Home is where the dawg is. Graphic by Anna Gritzenbach. 

MADDY BRODERICK | CULTURE EDITOR | mbroderick@butler.edu  

Decorating a dorm room can feel daunting. Suitcases pile up as the summer ends, storage bins overflow and Pinterest boards suddenly feel far away when faced with four empty walls. 

At its core, move-in is a hectic scramble to hang posters, meet new people, find the right bedspread and, for some, say goodbye to parents for the first time. Yet each year, students have the opportunity to make their space represent the person they are becoming. While a dorm may only be home for about eight months, moving into a new one is a reminder of how much growth can happen over two semesters.

Braedyn Stidams, a first-year international studies and environmental studies double major, moved into Irvington last month armed only with a Pinterest board he and his roommate created over the summer. Over the first week, the room started to come together.

“Both of our sides turned out a lot different [than we thought],” Stidams said. “But it kind of feels like home, even if it is not perfectly what I was thinking.”

That sense of “nice” is not about perfect coordination or curated style. For Stidams, it is about walking into his room after class and recognizing the items that make the space personal. His walls are filled with maps of the world, concert memorabilia and small touches that highlight his interests.

“I feel like [my décor] does a good job of showing … my general views on the world,” Stidams said. “I tried to tie in little aspects of environmental things and culture, and it is bright — I feel like it reflects my personality.”

Braedyn Stidams likes to be surrounded by the things he loves. Photo by Ella Beu.

Even in these early weeks, Stidams sees his dorm as a reflection of who he is now, with room to grow and evolve.

“Specifically for us [first-years], the first year [of college] is a big change,” Stidams said. “The me from [this past] summer to the start of my sophomore year is going to be an extremely different person in some aspects, so my room will probably reflect that.”

As first-years like Stidams experiment with what makes a dorm feel like home, sophomores return to campus with a clearer sense of what works for their living space. 

Maddie Stewart, a sophomore speech, language and hearing sciences major, used this year’s move-in as an opportunity to design her new room in Fairview. While she reused many items from her first year on campus, she also thrifted picture frames and purchased a few new items. 

“I put [pictures] from last year into frames to see how [my dorm] would look this time,” Stewart said. “I am really obsessed with ‘80s old woman style, so I thought it would be cute to implement that. I also wanted to see if I liked it better and be a little experimental with it.”

Stewart’s picture frame wall featuring friends and family became a central focus, blending old and new pieces that make her room both personal and practical.

“I brought a lot of trinkets from home — Sonny Angels, keepsakes and little things that do not necessarily get used, but make the space feel like mine,” Stewart said. “I think it makes [my room] feel more like a home than just a temporary space.”

Maddie Stewart sits in front of her vintage thrifted frame wall. Photo by Ella Beu. 

Just like Stidams, Stewart expects her room to adjust with her.

“I always end up changing my style as I grow up, but I think I will also try to reuse a lot of stuff [for next year].”

While sophomores can personalize their space with more direction, juniors can fully shape their own rooms to express their independence, maturity and personal growth. 

Junior elementary education major Audrey Stricker has spent the past two years learning how to make a dorm feel like home. Her Apartment Village single this year is colorful and filled with patterns, flowers and stuffed animals. 

“My goal is always to blend my favorite things together,” Stricker said. “I just get pieces of all the things I love.”

Audrey Stricker’s room in Apartment Village illustrates her personality through her décor choices, stuffed animals and heartfelt trinkets. Photo by Ella Beu.

Stricker has carried a few staples with her from her first year — including her favorite comforter — to set the tone for the room. She added mature touches like framed artwork, scenic paintings and a canvas piece for the first time. 

For Stricker, decorating her dorms over the last three years has shown her growth and independence. 

“My freshman and sophomore rooms were kind of copies of my room at home,” Stricker said. “This year, I have elevated it into a second space, almost like another home, but fully my own.”

Move-in — specifically making a dorm feel like home — is a process. But by the year’s end, a dorm room reflects the person who arrived, how they have grown and how their space has grown with them. Every choice, from tapestries to blankets to keepsakes, marks a step in figuring out how to live and feel at home at Butler.