The Facts: University Housing has decided to reopen dorms Friday night so students can attend the game against UNC-Chapel Hill on Saturday.
Our Opinion: This smart decision by University Housing is a positive one for students and should lead to greater turnout.
Last year’s game against Miami — one of our biggest games of the year — was under-attended, in part due to the dorm closings being in effect until after the game on Sunday. This year will be different.
In a very wise decision by University Housing, student dorms will reopen at 7 p.m. Friday, November the 27th to allow students easy access to the football game against UNC-Chapel Hill Saturday. This a very positive decision for the student body because it allows many students to attend the game that otherwise couldn’t. It is frustrating that students are forced to vacate their temporary homes for an extended weekend, but this adjustment makes that necessary burden more bearable.
This new policy of opening Friday was implemented not only with student fans in mind but also those in the marching band, whose attendance at the game is mandatory. Another group who will benefit are students who want to come back a bit early to study for finals and finish final projects. Being in vacation mode might prevent you from finishing final papers and projects that are due. Another group that will be affected is Resident Advisors. They may not get to spend all of break at home, but at least they get Thanksgiving off. In the past they had to stay the entire break to run the dorms, but the new policy is a nice compromise for all.
University Housing explained the reason dorms are closed during holidays is not any nefarious plot to upset students, it is just not economical or sensible to keep 20 dorms open during the entire break. Only a handful of students would take advantage of the first half of break and it would not be worth staffing and providing electricity and water to entire dorms. To ensure that Housing continues the smart new policy of opening on Friday, students should take advantage and spend the night Friday to attend the game. The excitement about the UNC game is high despite our team’s poor record. With more cheering, buzzed fans in attendance, how can we lose?
