Let’s talk specifically about the McNelis Commons! In the McNelis Commons there are four buildings you could be placed in. The 1 build, the 2 building, the 3 build, and the 4 building. The way for students to get into their dorms is by a key. You are required to keep the key all year and return it when you move over to the village. As a student who's been here all four years of college, from the outside they are technically the same. They are all suites and each building has two floors. Each suite is composed of two dorm rooms, common area, and a shared bathroom. Depending on the room you get you can either be in a room of two, or three people. Before covid they only had suites of rooms with three or four people. This was when one room in the suite was given bunk beds to sleep in. Now there are no bunk beds and everyone has their own bed space in the rooms. Depending on the suite set up common areas will be shaped differently, and the size of the rooms may vary a little but for the most part they are basically the same. The bathrooms vary as well but aren’t drastically different. All the bathrooms have two sinks, a toilet and at least one shower. The differences that can occur are if the toilet is in the open area or it’s in a little room of its own with a door for privacy. The other difference is with the shower(s), some suites have two standing showers, some have one standing shower, and one (if you’re on the ground floor) could be a shower with a bath.

Laundry room/cafeteria:

Some added facilities in the McNelis Commons are a laundry room and the dining hall. The laundry fee is included in your room and board tuition. Therefore, there is no longer a cost to wash and dry your clothes. You do still need to buy detergent, any fabric softeners you use, or any dryer sheets. The laundry room holds several washers and dryers. It is easily accessible from the dorms. The only dining hall is located in the McNelis Commons, too. The caf, as the students refer to it, is conveniently located right in the center of the grounds. The cafeteria has many food options and so there is always something for everyone. Some of the stations in the cafeteria are a grill station, a hot food station, a deli station, a salad/ fruit station; and more. There are seriously so many options of food for students to select from. This is why for such a small campus having only one dining hall is okay for the students.

Now let’s talk about the Fitzpatrick Village! As mentioned before the Village is for upperclassmen and older transfers. The location of the village is directly next to the academic buildings. The only thing separating it is a parking lot for students. In the villages there are five buildings. The 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500. The 100, 200, and 300 are around what the students like to call the village circle. There are some parking spaces for dorming students and if you’re lucky enough to grab a spot you don’t have to walk very far to get into your room. Speaking of getting into your rooms, in the village you get in differently than the commons. In the village you scan your ID to unlock the door. Only you and your suitemates can open your door. If your suite is connected to the floor below there may be a small common area that includes the stairs to get to the second level. This common area is not big enough to put anything in though. Also, the different floors do not have access to each other's room, only the front door. The people living on the same floor do have ID access to the suite but they only have scannable access to the common area and their own room.

100-400

Four of the buildings, (100, 200, 300, and 400) are remotely the same. Similar to the buildings in the commons. Depending on the room you get you can either be in a room of two, or three people. With the exception of the 400 which is suites of three and three in each room. Before COVID they had suites of three and four people, with the four rooms being bunks. Similar to the commons, depending on the suite set up common areas will be shaped differently, and the size of the rooms may vary a little but for the most part they are basically the same. The bathrooms vary as well but aren’t drastically different. All the bathrooms have two sinks, a toilet and at least one shower. The differences that can occur are if the toilet is in the open area or it’s in a little room of its own with a door for privacy. The other difference is with the shower(s), some suites have two standing showers, some have one standing shower, and one (if you’re on the ground floor) could be a shower with a bath.

500

The 500 is a little different but it’s the newest building and doesn’t have suites. It has many singular rooms with only two people living in them. The first floor is for male students and the second floor is for female students. Each room has their own bathroom and everyone shares a big common area. There is a common area on both floors. In this area there are couches, two microwaves, high top tables and chairs. In this building all the rooms are a little smaller than the rooms in the other buildings but you only have to share with one person rather than a whole suite.

Laundry room/ Romano

On the Village side of campus there is also a laundry room. It is located in the 200 building and is a room on the bottom floor. There are several washing machines and dryers. Similar to the common’s laundry, you do not have to pay to get your laundry done. You just need the detergent and anything else you like to use to clean your clothes.

According to Save The Student, there are 14 skills that can help you survive school:

1. Learn how to budget

2. Know when to go home on a night out

3. Start a meal plan

4. Avoid tricky seminar questions

5. Control your bladder in lectures

6. Learn how to read quickly

7. Ask for help when you need it

8. Learn some basic cooking skills

9. Learn how to use a washing machine

10. Know your limits on a night out

11. Keep on top of cleaning your house

12. Deal with difficult housemates

13. Use your student discount whenever you can

14. Beware of people trying to rip of college students

Attached I provided the article if you’d like to read more:

https://www.savethestudent.org/freshers/13-skills-to-help-you-survive-university.html

Lastly, my inspiration for this series of photos was Ansel Adams. Ansel Adams was a well known photographer who for six years wandered UC Santa Cruz’s campus leaving behind 485 gelatin silver prints. They even feature him in a book ‘Seeds of Something Different.’ His work inspired me because his main theme was documenting college life on campus. The only differences between his and mine are he shot in black and white and also documented more of the campus grounds instead of the buildings. My mine focus was to show what the dorming buildings are like at STAC and some information most dorming students and their families would like to know.