The Board of Visitors’ Academic and Student Life committee met Friday morning to discuss housing options for University students.
The meeting featured a panel comprised of Dean of Students Allen Groves, Brad Noyes, senior vice president of Brailsford and Dunlavey, Archie Holmes, vice provost for Educational Innovation and Interdisciplinary Studies and Gay Perez, executive director of Housing and Residence Life.
Groves began by introducing the BOV to the core tenants of Housing and Residence Life, including student self-governance, safety, increasing independence and inclusivity.
“The overarching objective in everything that we do in the University-managed and owned housing is to support the academic and educational mission of the University,” Groves said.
Groves also referred to a 2008 Housing and Residence Life policy change regarding how students choose their on-Grounds living situations. Instead of choosing the location where they want to live, the new policy requires students to choose a double or single room and students are assigned where they live.
The panel also included a presentation from Noyes regarding the data taken from a Brailsford and Dunlavey survey of University housing options and student satisfaction. The survey results revealed a majority of students are happy with their on-Grounds living situation at the University, Noyes said.
If the University wanted to build more student housing, it should target third- and fourth-year students, Noyes said. The data from the survey found the supply was meeting the demand for first- and second-years, but there is a significant drop in the percentage of third- and fourth-year students living on Grounds.
“About 43 percent of second-years live on Grounds. [The University is] meeting the demands of second-year students according to the research,” Noyes said.
The data also showed 15 percent of third-year students and 8 percent of fourth-years live on Grounds, Noyes said.
The best location for new University housing is on Jefferson Park Avenue and Brandon Avenue, Noyes said.
“Walkability is paramount to U.Va. experiences,” Noyes said. “On-Grounds housing preferences are driven by proximity to Central Grounds.”
In addition, the data concluded new housing developments such as the Flats at West Village and Uncommon primarily attracted graduate students instead of undergraduate students.
Holmes said students’ satisfaction with their housing arrangements correlated to a better academic experience.
Following the presentation, University Provost Tom Katesouleas gave an update from the Academic and Student Life Committee. He said faculty hiring is ongoing, and the University has already hired 20 new faculty and is looking to hire 70 more. In addition, the committee is looking at six proposals for the Pan-U institute, ranging from addressing environmental issues to finding new ways to combat health issues.
Dr. Christopher Holstege, executive director of Student Health, gave an update on Student Health and Counseling and Psychological Services, or CAPS. He said the overall number of Student Health visits has increased, especially in CAPS services.
“At CAPS, the number of visits has increased from 7,000 in 2005 to over 9,000 in 2015, a growth of 19 percent,” Holstege said.
The meeting concluded with the the introduction of new head football coach Bronco Mendenhall to the BOV. Mendenhall emphasized he is concerned with the academic success of the football players.
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