To counter the effect of budget cuts, many universities turned creatively into development - building new housing facilities complete with different living and recreational amenities to entice students and promote enrollment. The costs of these fancy new residential structures however falls beyond what most students can afford - leaving the minorities and disadvantaged students feeling shut out and unworthy.
Most students starting a new chapter in their lives as freshmen in the universities have high hopes thinking that they have already made a big step, especially those who are the first in their families to go to college. They have done really well.
However, the high costs of these new housing on campus runs above $1,000 per student per month. Something a number of students, including those who are struggling with their tuition fee, will not be able to afford.
Apart from the disparity of the costs that subtlety separates the haves and have nots, this defeats one essential and universal value shared by most universities - diversity. The whole setup in effect, robs students of the chance to live in a diverse community.
While schools are quick to defend their actions and preferences, others acknowledge that this is happening and that they are doing something about it thought these schools also point out that federal law hinders their housing officers to inquire about the students' background and finances. They also noted they have to respect students' preferences.
According to The Atlantic, this segregation phenomenon is not that visible in the freshmen year since students are assigned their roommates but this increases dramatically as students reach higher levels in the universities. Students prefer to be with a certain group of people or friends.
Research shows that these preferences of those who can afford the fancier dorms and better residence makes the lesser abel feel excluded in the community. They feel unworthy since they cannot enjoy the same opportunities when it comes to housing. Sadly, this is a problem deeply rooted in our society.
The same problem is now affecting higher dropout rates. The gaps in university housing prices is widening fast and this can be traced back to the fact that campuses need to generate profit somewhere in lieu of the budget cuts. It is quite worrying that financial reasons are driving this institution instead of educational principles.
Consider how much talent we are losing as the gap grows wider and the prices soar higher.
