Why I loved living in Chapman @ Kohl
Your first year at Bowling Green is full of many exciting things. Among those is the most exciting of all: living with a roommate and in a residence hall for the first time! The experiences and memories you gain will carry on through college, NO MATTER WHERE YOU LIVE!
As a freshman my roommate and I decided to preference Kohl Hall as our first choice, which to this day is one of the best decisions I’ve made in my three years at BGSU. We were both ecstatic when we got our living assignments and had been placed right where we wanted to be! As we got closer to the school year we were making all the typical decision: what color scheme we wanted our room to be, who was going to bring what,and so much more; however, we also decided we wanted to be part of the Chapman Learning Community through Kohl Hall.
Kohl Hall is home to two learning communities: Chapman Learning Community and Educators in Context and Community (previously Partners in Context and Community). In order to reside there you must be a part of one or the other.
My roommate and I both chose Chapman because it is a volunteer-based community. Basically, you choose an organization that is offered that is of the most interest to you and that you could see yourself working with during the semester. Once enrolled in that selection, you meet a few times a month to do volunteer work or listen to speakers from the organization. We chose to volunteer with The American Red Cross, our second best decision of college! Not only did we learn more about the organization through speakers, we also got to participate in Red Cross events! Our claim to fame our freshman year was being the Red Cross’ mascots during Red Cross events, Bloody the Blood Drop and the Red Cross Safety Squirrel! This by far is one of the greatest memories I have of college!
Living in Kohl Hall has more benefits than just being a part of an incredible learning community. You also have the EXCLUSIVE (ONLY available for Kohl Hall students) opportunity to take certain perspective courses on the first floor of the residence hall. What is better than being able to roll out of bed five minutes before class starts, putting your slippers on, grabbing your supplies, and going downstairs? Nothing!!
Not only are there classrooms located on the first floor with class sizes usually no more than 20, but the professors’ offices are also located on the first floor as well! This is incredibly convenient when you have a question about homework or an exam and you only have to go down a flight of stairs, or two, to get an answer!
Also located on the first floor of Kohl Hall is a workout room, again exclusive only for Kohl Hall residents! This is great because there is no time wasted walking to the rec! The kitchenette is another feature of Kohl Hall we took advantage of! Kristen, myself and our “third roommate” Jacqui would bake in the kitchen on a regular basis and also held a “family dinner night” once a week.
With the recent construction of new buildings, Carillon Place Dining AND Pinkberry are located right in front of Kohl Hall! It is also located right near the vast majority of all academic buildings!
I can honestly say I left freshman year with two new best friends, both of whom remain my best friends to this day and more memories than I’d ever be able to account for. College is not necessarily whether you live in the newest residence hall, rather the people you meet and the memories you make. Think of it this way: years from now you won’t remember the residence hall, but I guarantee you will remember the time spent meeting new people and making new friends!