Tarleton’s residence halls stir mixed emotions among residents

Jaquelyn Driscoll

Texan News Service

More than halfway through Fall 2012, Tarleton students living on campus are learning to live in crowded quarters. While many complain about overcrowded rooms, others are trying to make the best of the situation.

Desiree Strange, a freshman Ferguson Hall resident, is not so happy with the living conditions. “[There are] too many people in this tiny little itty-bitty room, and there is really not much space to do anything in here,” Strange said. “Ridiculous.”

Her room, measures 16 feet by 10 feet, just barely enough, she says, for one person, but not two.

“I honestly thought it was going to be bigger,” Strange said. “[Then] having only one sink for two girls is not great—at all!”

In contrast, Moody Hall, one of the oldest resident halls on the Stephenville campus, has rooms that are not much bigger than Ferguson Hall rooms. Heather Sims, who is a resident in Moody Hall and rooming with one other student, is accustomed to the grumbling about overcrowding, but is taking the conditions in stride.

Sims said “[Most people] are like ‘Aw, that sucks’, and sometimes it does suck, but I think Moody is great. [The rooms] are really nice.”

Coming into these old residence halls, students cope with a variety of issues. Kolby Brown and Dakota Duty said the heating and air conditioning in Bender Hall do not work like they should claiming their rooms are often way too hot.

“We just sweat our butts off in here,”  said Duty, a freshman from Bender Hall.

Not everyone is so dissatisfied. “I was expecting the dorms to be a lot worse than what they were,” Sims, a freshman, said. “Cause of the horror stories I had heard.”

In Traditions Hall, students are living three to a room. Harlie Parker, a freshman Traditions Hall resident said living with two other students can be a challenge.

“It’s pretty good,” Parker said. “It’s just hard to set boundaries and rules for the room, which is annoying—and it is very hard to study when I need to.”

In Hunnewell Annex, Emmylie Fisher lives with her roommate in very close quarters. Fisher said that even though the rooms are small, it brings the students living in the residence hall closer.

 “We keep our doors open a lot, so you can be walking down the hall and be like ‘hey’ to other people,” Fisher says.

Sims thinks living in cramped quarters isn’t all bad. “I get along well with all the girls on my hall,” Sims said. “[There is] a community feeling to us. We all look out for each other for the most part.”

However, there are instances, because of the close quarters, that roommates do not get along. Parker said because of the proximity with roommates, “you get to know the true person, both good and bad.”

Fortunately, Brown and Duty in Bender Hall do not have the same problems as Parker. “It has brought us closer together as friends,” Duty says. 

Although, the rooming conditions are not as comfortable as most would want, students are handling residence hall life with a great attitude and focusing more on the college life experience rather than the small-room hindrances.

“It’s different,” Fisher said. “But I just love the whole environment because it’s a friendly place to be.”