Special Interest Housing Selection Process
Updated Information will be available at a later date.
The Special Interest Housing Selection process allows students to select housing in Special Interest housing options within our nine on-campus residence halls. Special Interest housing includes eight housing options that are outside of the standard residence hall room selection process.
Any students that are interested in this process are encouraged to apply.
Please know that many parts of this process overlap with the residence hall room selection process, so students are encouraged to read both pages for all pertinent information.
OUTLINE | STEPS | HOUSING OPTIONS | OTHER INFO | QUESTIONS
Outline
The Special Interest Housing Application will be available April 26th, and will be due by 4 PM EST on June 9th.
Special Interest Housing Selection times will be released on June 18th and Selection will occur on June 21st and 22nd.
STEPS TO THE PROCESS
Special Interest Housing Selection contains the following steps for the 2021 - 2022 academic year.
Guides and assistance through the process can be found on our Housing How-To's page.
Complete the 2021-22 On-Campus housing application.
- All students participating in residence hall room selection must complete the on campus housing application. Students will not be able to select a room until this is completed.
- This application is available and can be found on the website.
Complete the 2021-22 Special Interest Housing Application.
- All students participating in residence hall room selection must complete the 2021-22 special-interest housing application.
- This application can be found on the website.
Special Interest Housing Selection
- All eligible students will receive a selection time from the Office of Residential Life. Students will need to access the website at, or after, their selection time to select a room.
- Students are encouraged to select a room as close to their start time as possible. The process will continue regardless of whether or not they have selected. Delaying selection will only limit housing options.
Housing OPTIONS
The following options are available during 2021 - 2022 Special Interest Housing selection.
Substance Free Community
The purpose of the substance-free community is to support all students in their decision to not allow alcohol or other drugs to negatively affect the community in which they live. Further, the substance-free community exists in order to provide students with a comfortable, safe, living environment free from the pressures associated with alcohol and other drugs. This community is closely knit, as students share this common bond. Students who are in substance-abuse recovery programs are encouraged to apply. Read More
The Substance Free community will make up the entirety of Howe and Rounds halls.
Students living within this community agree to three conditions:
- Not to physically bring drugs and/or alcohol into this community
- Not to enter this community under the influence of drugs and or alcohol
- Not bring guests into this area who are under the effects of drugs and/or alcohol
If students who live in this community are found to violate any of these conditions, they may be required to move out of the community.
Substance free - Quiet Community
The Substance Free - Quiet floor is located on the third floor of Howe Hall within the Substance-Free community and will observe 24-hour quiet hours in addition to the other conditions to substance-free living.
SUBSTANCE Free - Gender Inclusive COMMUNITY
The Substance Free - Gender Inclusive community will be located on the first floor of Howe Hall, within the Substance Free community. This community will combine all of the goals of both the Substance Free community, and Gender Inclusive housing. This community's size will be determined based on student interest. The Substance Free - Gender Inclusive Community will consist of suites that are outside of the confines of housing by legal sex.
Gardenside
Gardenside is a sustainability-focused community. Starting in Fall ’23, residents will be required to take a 1 credit corresponding Gardenside course, designed to cultivate an understanding of fundamental sustainability concepts (including community-based climate solutions), foster a sense of community among residents, and provide an opportunity for service-based experiential and experimental learning. Along with mini-lectures and discussions of academic readings, classes will include tours and hands-on “work days” in the North Woods, Community Garden, and on-campus compost site. Students in this course will also examine building systems and personal behaviors with a sustainability lens as related to their lived experience in the residence hall and on campus.
Global community
The global community is a special-interest option designed for students who value learning about other countries. This community is open to all students (domestic, international, study-abroad alumni, etc.) who wish to learn more about the global influences on students.
The global community will be located on the 11th floor of Jonsson Tower.
Multicultural community
The multicultural community is a special-interest option that will provide opportunities for students to learn about, and appreciate, the diverse backgrounds of their peers. This community is open to students of all racial and ethnic identities.
The multicultural community will be located on the 10th floor of Jonsson Tower.
Gender Inclusive housing
Gender Inclusive housing is an option provided within our residence halls to allow students to live outside of the standard confines of housing by legal sex.
Gender Inclusive housing will be located on the 9th floor of Jonsson Tower.
Quiet floor
The quiet floor is a community that is designed to provide a quieter atmosphere than most residence halls in hope of providing an environment that meets the needs of students who need a quiet environment for their studies. Read More
This floor will observe 24-hour quiet hours year-round. Students who live in this area who violate quiet hours may be asked to move out of the community.
The quiet floor will be located on the fifth floor of Jonsson Tower.
Women's Floor
Keeping with our roots of initially being founded as a women's college, Ȧ College currently offers women's floors within our residence halls. These floors provide our female students with an opportunity to live in a floor community consisting exclusively of other women. Read More
The Women's floor will be located on the seventh floor of Jonsson Tower.
The women's floor is open to all students who identify as women.
(Please know that due to limitations of software programs, students whose gender identity does not match their legal sex on record with the college will need to contact the Office of Residential Life directly to select this community).
Honors Forum housing
This housing option is only available to students in the Periclean Honors Forum. Students wishing to apply for this community will need to connect with the Honors Forum staff to indicate their interest. They will also need to complete the Special Interest Housing Application and indicate their interest in this community.
Honors Forum housing will be located on the sixth floor of Jonsson Tower.
Prism Community
Peers Representing Intersectional Identities and Sexuality Meaningfully.
The PRISM community strives to celebrate the lives and experiences of students who identify within the LGBTQ+ community. We strive to acknowledge intersectionality of identity and create a space where LGBTQ+ individuals can feel valued, safe, and in community with one another through intentional programmatic efforts. Through discussion of LGBTQ+ history, activism, and current events residents of this community can grow in their knowledge of and participation in the LGBTQ+ community at large.
The PRISM community will be located on the eighth floor of Jonsson Tower in suites with all gender bathrooms.
OTHER INFORMATION
Roommate selection
Students looking to live with a roommate in a special-interest housing option will need to do two things:
- First, you will need to designate your roommate via the 2021-22 on-campus housing application. For information on how to do this, see the Housing How-To's page. If you have already completed this application, you can still confirm your roommate via the "Edit Roommate Preference" link in the website.
- Second, both you and your roommate must request the same special-interest housing option(s) through the 2021-22 special interest housing application.
If both of these are complete, you will just need to "choose to include your roommate" when selecting a room.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Yes. You may sign up for as many options as you wish. There is no penalty for signing up for more options. You will pick what option you want at selection.
Yes. If you change your mind and do not wish to select to live in special-interest housing after submitting an application, you just need to not pick as part of this process. You will then participate in residence hall room selection.
Residence hall room selection is a fully online process; however, if you cannot select during your assigned time, you should assign a proxy.
The proxy process for residence hall room selection is fully online. Two documents have been provided below to help you with this process: