USC prepares for Village with housing changes

Students will experience changes to their housing options next year as the University works to accommodate an influx of students coming to live at the USC Village next fall.

Sophomores will be given priority for Village housing, and will get to choose which of the themed Residential Colleges they would like to reside in, according to USC Director of Residential Education Emily Sandoval. Sandoval said that Bohnett College, which at this point is the most developed, will have a theme of social entrepreneurship, where students will work together to solve a problem they see in Los Angeles.

“When all the themed residential colleges will be set, not all the colleges will be around that theme,” Sandoval told students attending an open house on Friday. “Some of the faculty will do some of the programs that are connected to that theme. The themes are currently being decided by the Office of the President and the Provost.”

The only freshman housing in the Village will be the McCarthy Honors College, which will house merit scholarship recipients. Those students are currently housed in Birnkrant Residential College, which will open up to non-scholarship recipients next fall.

“About 530 first-year students will be housed — all of the Presidential, Mork and Trustee scholars,” Sandoval said.

The conversion of Birnkrant may present new opportunities for spring admits to obtain housing, according to Undergraduate Student Government Vice President Austin Dunn. But ensuring that spring admits get access to the Village may prove to be more challenging, Dunn said. As of now, the Village is not disclosing any details, though USG is making an effort to try to learn more.

“It’s hard to get into talks with the University Village.” Dunn said. “One of the branches of USG community affairs, the advocacy branch, is starting to develop a better relationship with the administrators with regards to housing.”

Another issue being addressed is the increase in residential assistants needed to accommodate the new housing. Sandoval said that there would be 50 RAs living in the Village, increasing the total number of RAs from 156 to 206 and making it more crucial than ever for students to apply.

All freshmen will be required to have a full meal plan, while sophomores would need at least an apartment plan, both of which would include access to the new dining hall being built in the Village.

Sandoval also addressed concerns about safety that could arise due to the presence of retail stores on the first floor of the residential buildings.

“Just like the main campus, this area will lock down at 9 p.m.,” Sandoval said. “There is a guard shack, so anyone in the retail spaces will not be able to access the residential spaces. The bedrooms and apartments will be locked.”

Ensuring safety and promoting the open house is part of a campaign by USC Housing to push more students to apply for on-campus housing. In order to fill all of the new spaces, more students need to express an interest in living in USC housing than in previous years, Sandoval said.

USC Housing is also considering converting the Troy Hall Complex, which had formerly held upperclassmen, to graduate housing. The final decision will be made next semester depending on the demand once housing applications start coming in. If enough upperclassmen request to live in Webb Tower, they will be prioritized over freshmen to receive the open spots.

Correction: A previous version of this misspelled Bohnett College as Benet College. The Daily Trojan regrets the error.