Posts Tagged ‘housing’
Halls, housing, and hospitals! Oh my!
Good morning, bonjour, guten Morgen! It’s Thursday, though I wish it were Friday, and we’ve got a full day of news. Put your reading glasses on, grab your orange juice, and take a look at what we have for you today.
Read this: Yesterday, Jeremy Budd broke the news that the Special Interest groups to live in Wallach Hall, the former convent brownstones, and the EC townhouses have been announced. Find out more about the decision here.
Know this: James Yoon discusses the problems with housing and community development and suggests a change to our housing system.
Here’s more: St. Luke’s Hospital announced that it would not be reopening its pediatric ward, but would instead move it to its partnered hospital, Roosevelt Hospital, in Midtown. This sparked protests from local officials and nurses who claim this was an economic decision that would leave the children of West Harlem in the lurch.
Douglas Kessel / Senior Staff Photographer
Housing winners announced
The latest housing selection committee has extended offers to groups that applied to live in the Special Interest Community in Wallach Hall, the former convent brownstones on 113th Street, and the newly opened East Campus townhouses.
A Student Affairs spokesperson passed along the list of winners, who have until 5 p.m. on Thursday to confirm that they accept the offer. See the full list after the jump, and check back later tonight for a full story. More »
Wake up, it’s Wednesday!
Tough to believe you’ve been back in class for more than a week already. Combined with the weather, I bet your bones feel weary. Good thing it’s apparently National Escape Day; too bad there’s nowhere to escape to.
Read this: Native students from Columbia and Yale hosted a flash mob and teach-in yesterday during the Global Day of Action for Idle No More. The grassroots movement, originally from Canada, has gained traction through support from Native American student leaders across the country.
Know this: Many may have already noticed that Housing has installed window stops in many dorms over winter break in response to student and parent concerns about safety.
Here’s more: Residents of the Fredrick Douglass Houses called for steps to restore the community to previous standards during a event at the Children’s Aid Society, hosted by the Park West Neighborhood History Group.
Housing selection committee roster
Without further ado: your next housing selection committee.
The committee that will select the occupants of the new Special Interest Community in Wallach Hall, the former convent brownstones on 113th Street, and the newly opened East Campus townhouses, consists of 11 people, including six undergraduates. A committee member has passed along the roster to Spectator.
Spectator reported last December that administrators plan to give the interconnected convent brownstones to three special interest communities, which will become part of undergraduate housing in fall 2013.
See the full committee roster after the jump.
Housing going into dorm rooms over break (UPDATED)
UPDATE: We recently got in contact with Scott Wright, VP of Campus Services who said that Columbia’s Housing is making rounds of students’ residence hall rooms to prepare for potential upgrades in flooring, lighting, and furniture.
According to Wright, these campus-wide surveys, conducted every 3-5 years, help determine which residence halls receive treatment.
Housing already plans to do full-scale renovations this summer of the bottom five floors of Wallach and Schapiro Halls, but is still deciding which other buildings should receive some upgrades.
Long-term plans include exchanging metal-framed beds for easier-to-raise wooden beds and replacing carpet with wood or vinyl flooring to improve cleanliness, especially for students with asthma or allergies, Wright said.
“We do that work each summer, so we need to know now if we’re prioritizing one building over another,” Wright said, adding that “it’s what we do in addition” to complete floor or building renovations. More »
Keep the new brownstones in general selection
There’s been a lot of talk about brownstones and housing this semester, including last weekend’s announcement that Lambda, AXO and Q House will occupy the three open brownstones on 114. The next question of focus will be how to use the newly acquired brownstones on 113.
When the administration announced that students would start living in these brownstones next fall, they also announced that they were looking for student input into ways to use them.
Amidst claims of bias in the brownstone selection process, Dean Martinez held a poorly-attended town hall. I suspect that one of the reasons students may not have attended this town hall was that the administration had already made clear that these brownstones would be used for special interest housing instead of entering the general housing lottery.
Chair of Greek Judicial Board resigns over brownstone decisions
Matthew Renick, GS/JTS ’13, former president of AEPi*, and Chairman of the Greek Judicial Board, just sent out a blistering email informing the “Columbia community” of his decision to resign his board position in protest over the decisions Columbia recently made regarding brownstone allocation. The email was sent to leaders of the Greek community, as well as Deans Kevin Shollenberger, Terry Martinez, and Cristen Kromm.
“Not only do I feel that the Committee and Dean Shollenberger made the wrong decision in this case, but I also feel that the entire process by which it was decided was fundamentally and morally wrong,” Renick wrote. He later suggested that the students on the housing committee may have faced “pressure, threats, and intimidation” from other students. See the entire email below and after the jump.
Spec will be reviewing the claims Renick makes in his letter for accuracy — stay tuned for updates from the news side.
Members of the Columbia Community,
I am writing this letter to inform you of my immediate resignation from the position of Chairman of the Greek Judicial Board. I will no longer notify chapter presidents of violations, and I will no longer hear cases. I will no longer work under the Director of Greek Life, and I will no longer grade the ALPHA Standards of Excellence. I am giving up all affiliations with the Greek Judicial Board, and I am giving up all attachments that I have to the Columbia University administration.
My decision is based in large part on my reaction to the Brownstone Application Committee’s decision to award the three brownstones to Q House, Alpha Chi Omega, and Lambda Phi Epsilon. Not only do I feel that the Committee and Dean Shollenberger made the wrong decision in this case, but I also feel that the entire process by which it was decided was fundamentally and morally wrong. More »
Special Interest Community conversation tonight
Tonight at 7 p.m. in Carman Lounge, Dean Shollenberger and Dean Martinez will hold a Community Conversation about the new Special Interest Community that will open up in the residence hall opening next fall (apparently known as the Convent). Haven’t followed this development? Don’t worry. Read about the convent, Martinez’s involvement, and some general housing stuff.
And if you’re wondering about the brownstone “winners,” stay tuned the next few days—the decision will be released soon. Read more here and here for recent coverage.
This week in CCSC: Hey there, Dean Martinez
Rakhi Agrawal reports from last night’s Columbia College Student Council meeting—the council’s antepenultimate meeting of the semester:
Martinez and her convent: Dean of Community Development and Multicultural Affairs Terry Martinez updated the council on renovations to the former convent house house located on West 113th Street, which is being converted into undergraduate residence halls. The three connected brownstones will house about 72 students. Martinez hosted a town hall earlier this semester to get student input on designing the residence halls, but the event was poorly attended, and so she has been going to the student councils to solicit feedback.
Set in stone: Martinez said that the new residence hall will definitely be used as special-interest housing, given the many special interest communities that applied for a brownstone and the number of groups that are interested in establishing living and learning communities. Council members suggested several possible themes for the new housing, including a creativity/innovation building for groups like the Application Development Initiative, Writers House, a performing arts community, an international house, a center for wellness or women’s issues, interfaith special interest housing, and a social justice building. Martinez will host another town hall after Thanksgiving, and administrators will choose a theme by semester’s end. More »