Overcrowding forces some TCU students to live in lounges

Even though the number of students admitted decreased, students were still put into converted rooms.

Photo by Lindsay Weaver

A converted lounge that three freshman are currently sharing.

Some students on campus at TCU are living in residence hall lounges or tripled up in a room meant to accommodate two this semester.

Director of Housing and Residence Life Craig Allen said that more students wanted housing than TCU could accommodate, but the halls were not crowded.

Freshman business major Emily Walden disagreed.

“It’s really crammed, and I don’t appreciate it,” Walden said. Walden lives in Colby Hall with two other roommates in a room that is meant for only two students. “It’s bearable, but it’s not comfortable," she said.

The reason for the packed rooms was the increase in demand for housing, Allen said.

Courtney Garcia, a first year pre-major and Walden’s roommate, said she expected that either she or one of her roommates would move, which would make more space for whomever is left.

Both Garcia and Walden agreed that their room was too small for three people, and said they wished the room was not overcrowded.

Despite students’ complaints that their rooms are not large enough, Allen said he believed there is plenty of room in the residence halls.

“We don’t have overcrowded housing,” Allen said. “We have grown in capacity and grown in demand, and we are excited that students want to live on campus.”

Allen said Housing & Residence Life has added more than 600 beds within the past five years. One hundred of those were added this year to accommodate the number of students wanting housing.

Housing bought more beds in the GrandMarc to accommodate the growing number of sophomores wanting housing as well, Allen said.

Walden said she believed overcrowding could be prevented if TCU admitted fewer students.

Ray Brown, dean of admission, said 200 fewer students were offered admission this year, compared to the past year. He said it was hard to say whether or not TCU would admit fewer students every year.

“There are many factors that we look at when deciding those numbers,” Brown said.

He said it is unprecedented for a university to decrease the number of students admitted, but that is exactly what TCU did this year.

Even though the number of students admitted decreased, students were still put into converted rooms.

Building another residence hall might help alleviate overcrowding on campus, Garcia said.

Allen said the TCU master plan includes building of more housing. Building a new hall has been in the plan for a year and a half, but will not begin until the end of this semester or the beginning of next semester, he said.