In an undisclosed Housing Division conference room, 35 fourth years will labor anywhere from 40 to 100 hours this week to select from 234 applications the 47 students who will be offered the coveted position of living on the Lawn next year.
The number of applicants is down 16 this year from 250 last year.
However, Selection Committee members, some of whom do not live on the Lawn, say the decrease is insignificant and that 234 is about average in relation to past years' numbers.
Each Selection Committee member will read all 234 applications and vote for their top 47 picks.
Selection Committee Chairman Don Koons said the Committee then will compile the results and tally the top 47 vote-getters and 15 alternates by this Saturday. The Committee is aiming to mail acceptance letters Feb. 14, but it is possible they could get out earlier, Koons said.
The process of picking Lawn residents began in October when the Steering Committee, consisting of students, faculty and administrators, picked the current fourth years who would make up the 35-member Selection Committee.
Student Council President Joe Bilby, who was on the Steering Committee, said he has strong feelings about what it means to live on the Lawn.
"The experience should be more than just an address," Bilby said. "The students picked to live on the Lawn should find ways to continue to make a contribution even as fourth years. It would be a great shame if the Lawn became a fourth-year retirement community."
The Selection Committee met last week to discuss what to look for in a Lawn resident, Koons said. He said the Committee will look at the applicants' visions for what they want to do with the honor if they do get to live on the Lawn.
"We also want to see what living on the Lawn will mean to" each applicant, he added.
"There's no one formula for getting on the Lawn," Koons said. "The Committee is taking a holistic view, taking into account both an applicant's scholarship and service."
Third-year Engineering student Zach Owens, who applied to live on the Lawn, said he would consider it a great honor to be offered a room and that the competition this year will be tough.
"I grew up in Charlottesville and remember field trips to the Lawn. It's been a part of my entire life," Owens said. "The results will be interesting to see whether they weigh activities or academics more"
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