Student housing at the university after a turbulent year

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/08/2021 (1713 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With September quickly approaching, many returning and first-time students will be arriving at Brandon University and Assiniboine Community College for classes. Both Brandon University and ACC campuses are reopening to in-person classes after a year of delivering and attending classes online.

This also means that Residences Services are reopening as well. The three dormitories that house students on campus were open during the past year but with strict rules to adhere to COVID-19 restrictions. It was not a perfect system, though many systems had to figure out how to adapt to the swift changes forced on them as well. This upcoming semester will have tighter and stricter deadlines due to the COVID-19 restrictions that are still in place for the university.

The three dormitory residences are open to Brandon University and ACC students. There is Darrach Hall, a dorm that is specific to the male gender and those who identify as male. There is Flora Cowan Hall, a dorm specific to the female gender and those who identify as female. The third option is a dorm called McMaster Hall, the largest of the three and assignable to all genders.

Each of the rooms contains all the furniture a student would need. A bed, dresser, bookshelf, chair, and a night table are provided for each occupant. A desk lamp is available on a sign-out basis. Sheets, blanket, and pillow are also included with the room upon request. All rooms have a cable outlet and internet access. Applications are processed on a first come, first-served basis with priority given to current residence students and those who immediately pay their deposit and processing fees.

There are no options for family housing on campus for students who are married or have children, and there are no other alternatives for housing provided by the university.

“Our goal is to provide an amazing experience for residents while also maintaining proper safety measures,” BU Ancillary Services residence manager Derek Booth told the Sun. “The level of restrictions in BU Residence are guided by current Manitoba Public Health Orders and by Brandon University’s Re-Opening plan. We hope to provide as much of a normal year as possible that’s conducive to socializing and building connections.”

Even checking into the dorms has changed a bit. Check-ins need to be scheduled ahead of time and most will take place between Sept. 2-5, right before classes start. Only two ‘helpers’ will be allowed to accompany the student as they move in. Ancillary Services also asks that helpers stay only as long as an hour in order to reduce overcrowding and bottlenecking during these busy times.

To help reduce the risk of COVID-19 infections there is an increased cleaning protocol, social distancing, wearing masks, increased washing, and sanitizing of hands. This will be common across the campus, not just specific to the dorms.

During a normal year, there are quite a few rooms available at the dormitories but as the university is transitioning back to an in-person format, the dorms are reflective of that. There are 250 rooms that students can utilize, and some rooms are still available to be booked by those students who wish to live in dorms. At this time, Brandon University Residence Ancillary Services are only providing Single Occupancy Rooms, which means that residents cannot have roommates. Though many students can expect to share a washroom, whether it’s a semi-private washroom or a communal washroom space.

Ancillary Services hopes to continue to create and provide a community for students that choose to stay on campus, and they want to keep everyone safe by adhering to many of the protocols enacted by the provincial and federal governments. They continue to be a helpful resource for students on campus.

“We always try to be as personable as possible during residence check-in; for many of these students it’s their first time living away from home, so we want to create a sense of community and trust right off the bat and that won’t change,” Booth said.

The past has changed. A lot of things are not done in person anymore. Signing up for a dorm needs to be done over the phone and over email. Extra fees have been added because of this extra amount of processing that is required.

Student housing can be difficult for new students in a normal year, and this year will certainly add to that stress but there is help that Ancillary Services is always willing to provide. From speaking to the residence manager, it is obvious that there is hope. Hope for the future and hope in continuing to grow the community that has existed at the university and the residences.