After celebrating 50 years of excellence, Stony Brook University, home to thousands of students, is still under construction. However, this constant drive to improve is marred by some serious issues that have arisen this year, especially overcrowding.
Entering into my third year as a Stony Brook University student, my view of the university campus is quite different and more realistic than that of the entering freshman student body. Their expectations are at a risk of being unfulfilled due to insufficiencies concerning shortage of residence capacity and overpopulation. These factors affect the quality of the freshmen’s transition into the college routine, which, while promised to be smooth, may very well be a bumpy ride for the new batch!
This year, the university student population has risen to the point where the campus is visibly overcrowded. This apparent rise in the student density will first and foremost inconvenience the students residing on campus. All freshman rooms in residence buildings have been tripled this year to accommodate the larger incoming class. Unfortunately, newly admitted students will have to remember their first college dormlife experience as that of being packed like sardines! The ability of students to study effectively will likely suffer due to the overpopulated dorms. This may lead to a larger influx of students into the library during operating hours which may diminish the library’s reputation as being the optimal spot for a quiet, thorough study session. This crisis affects another area of academics as well: classroom learning. Overcrowded classrooms initiate a chain reaction which might ultimately lead to a decline in student-teacher interaction and thus lower the standard of teaching.
Third and fourth year undergraduates are also in danger of being negatively affected by the overpopulation crisis. Some of these students may be forced to move into the West Apartment residence halls, which are more expensive and may not be readily affordable for everyone. The injustice of these possible outcomes provokes the question: How are the funds coming from our ever-increasing tuition fees being used in order to accomodate student comfort and quality of experience? One positive change that will be noticeable this year is the renovation of the SB Union Commons. The new variety of food choices and larger seating area are steps forward towards resolving the campus dining problems that students have faced in recent years. Hopefully, we are looking toward a year with smaller dining hall queues like at the SAC cafeteria during lunch hours. The widespread construction seen all over the campus is a sign of improvement; I hope it will improve the quality of living on campus as well as take care of the overpopulation dilemma. These renovations in progress not only include dining hall areas but are also for cosmetic purposes, such as the renovations seen in front of the Wagner College. So, even though we are bound to face some difficulties due to campus overcrowding, the future doesn’t seem too grim for students who are expecting to return to a suburban campus with the familiar aura of serenity.
