Some students at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst currently living in the university's system of "legacy floors" have voiced concerns about impending changes to the system, though university officials maintain that these changes have been misrepresented.
Though a March 12 Boston Globe article reported UMass-Amherst is "seeking to eliminate" legacy floors, officials from the university told The Herald they are merely adding an educational aspect to the program.
Legacy floors are designated for students wishing to live in programs that emphasize an exploration of black, Asian-American, multicultural, international or Native American cultures, according to a statement from Michael Gargano, vice chancellor for student affairs and campus life, sent to The Herald March 20.
Instead of eliminating the floors, as the Globe reported, administrators "are enhancing this option by adding a learning component," Gargano's statement reads.
According to officials at the university, the article omitted key points regarding the restructuring of its legacy floors. Currently, if a student is interested in a specific culture, they indicate their interest in living on a corresponding floor, according to Patrick Callahan, a spokesman for UMass-Amherst. In the future, the legacy floors will be part of a new program for freshmen.
"That program is rather similar, so all of those students will live together in residence halls and there will be, again, a sort of academic and cultural component that comes into the residence halls," Callahan said.
Students choosing to participate in the new program will "learn about" academic and career planning, transitioning to college life, acquiring leadership skills, interacting with faculty and staff and becoming involved in the surrounding community, according to Gargano's e-mail statement.
Following completion of their first year, students participating in the program will move into the school's traditional housing system.
"The vice chancellor wants students to come together by interest groups and not by other factors," Callahan said. The new program is focused on emphasizing academic, cultural and social interest groups, he added.
Some students wary of changesBianca Wynn and Nisha Mungroo, a junior and sophomore, respectively, both live on UMass-Amherst's Harambee floor, which Wynn said is considered the "minority floor." Neither student chose to live on the floor, but now both girls consider the other residents a permanent part of their lives.
"We're so upset that they're trying to take the floor away," Wynn said.
Mungroo said she was placed on the floor arbitrarily.
"Last year I was placed on the floor because I guess there was limited housing and I was a freshman," Mungroo said. "When I moved on the floor, I fell in love with everyone and had to live there again."
According to Wynn, the Harambee floor provides many opportunities for interaction a-mong its members. In addition to holding ice cream and cupcake socials, residents are also considering a trip to New York City to see "The Color Purple." Mungroo said everyone who visits the floor enjoys the atmosphere created by its residents. "Our floor is the only floor that people can come to 24/7 and just feel comfortable," she said.
"Other floors (have socials), but they're not like us. You can go on any random floor and if you walk around, no one knows their next-door neighbor. But when you come to Harambee, we all hang out together. We're together 24/7. We're inseparable. We are family," Wynn said.
Wynn said she does not believe a learning component will contribute positively to the residential experience. "Classes are a break from the floor," she said. "Classes with friends are not good. It's a bad combination."
Similar options at BrownStudents on Brown's campus are also afforded the opportunity to live in on-campus residences that center around a shared cultural interest. These houses are not typically occupied by students of a single race or ethnicity. Jorge Garcia '07, president of Machado House, a Spanish-speaking program house, said, "Not everyone here is Hispanic. People from so many different backgrounds come together at Machado. Language is just a thing that brings people together."
Alexander Richardson '07, president of Buxton International House, agrees that living in program housing creates a tightly knit community among members. Richardson grew up in Toronto, which he describes as a multiethnic city, and he said Buxton is a continuation of that diverse atmosphere.
"I realize that it's small. We can only house 60 people and obviously there are some 500 international undergrads. What I like about the house is that it's half-American. It represents a decision of the students to engage in a very intimate international experience," Richardson said.
Both Garcia and Richardson see very few disadvantages to living in this sort of housing. "It would be a real misopportunity" if programs like this were ended at Brown, Richardson said.
"It brings people together and it brings up more diversity, actually, because people are coming together for an interest. You're not limiting people who are joining the house. You're taking a different perspective and it actually enriches the community," Garcia said.
