About 160 students still living in lounges

Packing her things for the second time in more than a week, freshman Jerra Wolfe said goodbye to the lounge she loved to call home.

Two weeks before coming to IU, Wolfe learned she was being put in overflow housing. She said she did not know what that meant at first but soon found out she would be living in a lounge, not a dorm room.

Although initially mad, she did not anticipate becoming so close with her three roommates.

But after getting settled, Wolfe was forced to say goodbye to her roommates on Saturday and moved across Forest Quad.

Altogether, 250 students lived in lounges at the start of school, said Sara Ivey Lucas, assistant director of assignments. Currently, about 160 students are still living in the lounges, and many will remain there for the bulk of the semester, she said.

“In the end, we have to get students out of lounges,” she said, adding that she believes
everyone will be placed in dorms before spring semester.

Bob Weith, director of Residential Programs and Services, said things are moving along given how late in the summer RPS had an exact number of students in need of housing.

Though RPS’s goal is to clear students out of the lounges as quickly as possible, Wolfe said she’d prefer if they slow down.

The day before she had to switch dorms, Wolfe said she was crying and didn’t want to pack. She said she felt she adjusted to her new room for no reason.

In the days before she moved to IU, Wolfe said she was worried about living in the lounge.

“It’s different because four people are being thrown together pot luck, but it turned out great,” Wolfe said. “We are amazing together.”

When she moved in, Wolfe said she was told to be prepared to stay in the lounge for at least six weeks to as long as one semester.

But now, Wolfe is more worried about living on an academic floor.

When being removed from lounges, students do not have a choice of where they are placed. This means many students, like Wolfe, may be placed on special floors or learning communities.

The assignments office knows students have preferences, Ivey Lucas said, but the office works with the space it has available.

Even though Wolfe became extremely close with her roommates, she said she will adapt to her new dorm as well.

“I was ready for the long haul,” Wolfe said.