By Tim Flavin
In the fall semester of 2013, Aubuchon Hall at Fitchburg State will become an all-freshmen dorm. The bold conversion from a mixed housing of upperclassmen and freshmen to exclusively freshmen is new to the campus. There is a mixed reaction from both the staff and students involved with the dorm.
Zachary Levenson, a freshman at Fitchburg State who had planned to relive his sophomore year in Aubuchon, is now forced to reconsider his plans. When talking about the inconveniences of this decision towards the dorm he said, “It forced me to find a new roommate who wants to live somewhere else, and we had to argue about where to live. It will screw up a lot of other resident’s plans as well, forcing us to now scramble for rooms in Mara Village, Herlihy Hall, and Russell Towers. I might not agree with the decision, but I understand why the university is making this choice.”
He also thinks that a lot of upperclassmen don’t want to live in Aubuchon anyway, so it only inconveniences the minority of students who want to live there. “It’s a good decision for freshmen bonding. It will help them spend a lot of time together and bond as classmates,” he continued.
It was a decision that the university had to make, and he doesn’t seem to think that there will be too much backlash from the decision. He will miss living in Aubuchon, but he thinks he’ll be able to be just as happy in Russell Towers, where he will be living during his sophomore year.
When talking to some of the Resident Assistants currently working in Aubuchon Hall, they seemed to have a positive outlook on the transformation of the dorm. Most objected to finding it unfair for the upperclassmen.
“There are plenty of other good places to live on campus,” noted Haley, one of Aubuchon’s RAs. Lauren, another RA, said, “It’s a good idea to put everyone together and build a strong relationship.”
They both agreed that some upperclassmen may not want to leave Aubuchon because of the free laundry and habitual feeling of it, but the administration encourages all of the people of Aubuchon and Fitchburg State to comply with the new rule. It will help freshmen meet each other, and create opportunities to become closer by living together. This is clearly the best decision for both the university and incoming freshmen for the upcoming 2013-2014 school year.
