By JESSICA SELLS
September 21, 2006

As much as I hate writing articles that only relate to one segment of Abbey students, I feel this is an issue that needs to be addressed. So, for the commuters and ADP students out there, I do apologize. The resident student body of the Abbey is growing -- and that’s great! I’m not going to complain about the dorms being full. What I don’t understand is why the dorms are so disgusting. Yes, that’s correct -- disgusting. Sure, the outside is not so bad, but the inside -- where we live -- NOT worth the money we pay to attend this school.

Throughout my three years here, we have been very vocal about the problems with our dorms. Most issues stem from a very basic problem: our dorms are just too old. They have been used longer than they were meant to be used. They are not excellent, and while I am unsure whether actual THINGS can be virtuous, I know that if they can, our dorms are NOT.

Now, if I were attending a less expensive school, I wouldn’t complain. But we are at a very expensive school that prides itself on appearances (look at all the new “stuff” around campus that is geared directly toward appearances!) How then are we letting our living area continue to be so gross?

We have had non-stop issues with our suite since the beginning of the school year. I know Residence Life is probably ready to serve our heads on platters. (Just kidding) Is it Residence Life’s fault? No, they are simply working with what they are given.

So, you want to know what’s so wrong with our dorms? Let’s start with the mold problem. For the first few days after moving into my suite, you could open the door and literally smell the mold. Can mold contribute to the detriment of a student’s health? Why, yes, it can.

Our rooms are ant-infested, as is the bathroom. Our bathroom shelves are rotting off the wall. Yes, ROTTING. Our shower had a leak that led itself into my suitemate’s room, as well as plaster falling off the ceiling that leaked dirty water onto us. Is it just the case of one unfortunate suite? Nope. My friends on the other side of the building complain about the same issues.

Residence Life has been very helpful -- the plaster on our ceiling was fixed, and the showerhead was replaced and the leak stopped. But what can they do about rotting shelves, moldy suites, and ant infestations? They have offered us ant traps (didn’t work), fumigated (didn’t work), and are generally as frustrated as we are (except they get to go home to nice places at the end of the day).

I know there is someone out there who wants to know why we have ants -- I swear to you, it isn’t anything to do with us. Our food is properly sealed and put away, our trash is taken out. We do what we need to do to keep the little critters away. But there they are.

Okay, so those are the problems I have personally had this semester. Are there more? Of course. Do I know about every problem? Obviously not. Are these problems that could possibly be helped if our dorms were newer? I believe so.

I know there are others who remember being told that “building new dorms” was a first priority with our new administration. Well, I feel lied to. Building new dorms has not taken any kind of priority, at least not that the current students can see. (Thank goodness I don’t work for the school; I might find myself out of a job saying things like this!)

We have opened a coffeehouse, put up new awnings and signs, labeled every dorm and apartment with street names (what is the POINT to that? We get our mail in the coffeehouse!), changed our school logo on every bit of media that we send out (that itself had to cost thousands), broke ground for a new adoration chapel, and many other things that escape my memory at the moment.

The basic point I am trying to make here is that we were promised dorms. My class (‘07) was told that ground for our new dorms would be broken before our senior year. Okay. It is our senior year. Where are the dorms? Where are they going to be located? Where are all the improvements we were promised and why are we getting these little things instead? One wonders if we might have saved some of the money spent on signs and awnings and built something useful.

I am not offended by the lack of aesthetics in our dorms. I am offended that the health of our students has not seemed to come first. We should not have to live with mold, ants, lingering odors left from attempts at fumigation, and the like. These affect our physical and mental health. (Need an example? Ask me about my recent experience with fumigation.)

I challenge the faculty and staff to come take a look at the dorms. Not just a cursory look -- come sit down and try to imagine living in them. I am extending an open invitation to our faculty and staff, as well as to Dr. Thierfelder: Come see for yourselves!