BGSU’s New Dorms: Are they Worth the Money?
Author: Christina Hepner | Filed under: Enterprise Story, Spring 2012, Student ContributorBy: Christina Hepner
Bowling Green's new dorm Falcon Heights. Photo by Christina Hepner
Kayla Williams, sophomore at Bowling Green State University, signed up for a new dorm on campus with the expectation that it would be a lot better than the older dorms.
After living in the brand-new Falcon Heights for the year, she said it was not at all what she expected it to be.
“The walls are so thin that you can hear everything that everyone else is doing,” Williams said. “I can get the same amenities living in Founders for less money than I pay living here in the new dorm.”
Like Williams, many students are wondering if the amenities provided are actually worth the money to live in the new dorms that Bowling Green State University recently added to the campus.
From 2000 to 2010 the average public university has increased the room rates by $2,000, according to The College Board, a group of people who study college life. Students are in greater demand for what they want and need in a dorm room. More colleges are trying to accommodate students so they are building new dorms and making the rates go up said Anna Reisner, Assistant Director of Budget and Finance for Residence Life.
Among other four-year public colleges in Ohio, Bowling Green is the fifth highest on the chart comparing the price of room and board, according to a report from the Bowling Green State University Board of Trustees.
Chart from BGSU's Board of Trustees meeting showing where BGSU ranks among other schools. Chart from BGSU Board of Trustees
“We are not the cheapest, and we are not the most expensive, we are right in the middle,” Reisner said. There is only a 2 percent increase overall in the price of the new dorms. She said that the new dorms are worth the cost. They are providing amenities that students want and are not as expensive as other competing schools. In the new dorm rooms the students get their own private bedroom and bathroom. They also get brand new furniture, which is unlike the old dorms.
When picking the price of the new dorms BGSU Residence Life had to consider what they cost to build them, Reisner said. Residence Life had to make the dorms a reasonable cost and just enough money to not put the school in massive amounts of debt. “We have to continue to compete with the surrounding schools,” Reisner said.
“It sounds like a lot of money until you start comparing costs,” said Jeff Bryden, a Marketing Instructor at Bowling Green. It is just like looking for cars, they are all forms of transportation, but the individual has to decide what they are willing to pay for what the car has to offer, said Bryden. He said that by looking at the charts the costs look reasonable, but the students are the ones who will decide if they believe the new dorms are worth what they are being offered.
Samantha Avena, freshman who lives in Falcon Heights, enjoys the new dorms. Avena lived in MacDonald Hall her first semester and says that Falcon Heights is a lot better and worth the money.
“I am living the fabulous life,” Avena said. “I get to have my own bedroom and bathroom, and it is so nice and clean.” Avena said that she could never go back to living in MacDonald Hall after being able to live in Falcon Heights.
The main living area in one of the dorm rooms in Falcon Heights. Photo by Christina Hepner
“I wish I had the chance to live in the new dorms, I think that the price would definitely be worth what it has to offer,” said Jessica Smith, a sophomore who lives in Offenhaur. Smith tried to sign up for the new dorms last year but was not able to get in. “Offenhaur is a nice place to live, but I would die to have the privacy of my own bathroom.”
Not everyone is going to like the new dorms, Reisner said. Some students are going to fall in love, and some are going to think that it is not worth the cost. The chart from the Bowling Green’s Board of Trustees meeting shows that the campus is still competing with other schools while keeping the price reasonable.
“Ultimately it is the individual student’s decision if the cost of the new dorms is worth it to them,” Reisner said.
Tags: BGSU, Falcon Heights, New Dorms
