Alexandra Evans, Copy Editor

For the first time in several years, Utica College opted not to house on-campus students at the Ramada Inn in New Hartford.

Students who lived at the Ramada had to make a mile commute to UC’s main campus in order to attend classes and on-campus activities. For their peers who live in on-campus housing, these necessities were only a few minutes walk away.

According to Scott Nonemaker, executive director for Student living and college engagement, the was made based off the number of students enrolled in the 2018-2019 academic year.

“We determined that the expected returning student population was going to be low enough to house everyone on main campus,” Nonemaker said.

At the sametime, the decision will not force more student to triple in dorms that would generally only house two students, nor will it create a more competitive housing selection process for students who wish to continue living on-campus.

Nonemaker explained students probably would have been more appreciative of the decision had it come sooner, but reactions to the change appeared to be mixed.

Senior Mark Martinez lived at the Ramada Inn for one year and would have lived there again had it been an option. Martinez understands why UC made the decision to no longer house students at the Ramada, but he believes there were multiple benefits to living there that are now going to be missed.

“There were a lot of positive things about living in the Ramada,” Martinez said. “The isolation helped with getting school work and studying done.”

Martinez also believes that having to plan his day ahead of time due to the bus schedule helped him to become better with time management. He said the resident assistants were able to be more creative with their events due to the space they had available.

R.J. Winje, a senior, did not agree with Martinez’s opinion about living in the Ramada.

“I felt like living at the Ramada put me at a disadvantage because I was very secluded from campus,” Winje said. “It made it hard to hangout with my friends who lived on-campus, and even harder to make new friends. Plus, being a college student, mornings aren’t the easiest, and in order to catch the shuttle I had to wake up even earlier to make it to class than I would’ve had I lived on-campus.”

Nicole Herringshaw is a senior who is pursuing a degree in health studies and psychology while participating in volleyball, basketball and track. She lived in the Ramada for one year and agrees that not housing students at the Ramada was the right decision, especially for athletes.

“Being a full-time athlete, life was harder living at the Ramada,” Herringshaw said. “I was constantly having to make time consuming trips back and forth to change for practices and lifts or to shower before class.”

Although Martinez, Herringshaw and Winje all agreed that living in the Ramada allowed for a more independent form of on-campus living, they also felt that it was time to move past housing at the hotel.