FACILITIES PHOTOS COURTESY OF BARNES GROMATZKY KOSAREK ARCHITECTS AND MACKEY MITCHELL ARCHITECTS Texas Tech University, West Village Residence Halls: Apartment-style units provide the space and privacy desired by upper-division and graduate students. However, providing living spaces that offer more independence can increase construction cost significantly as compared to the more traditional cost-effective layouts of first-year halls. Ward explains that at the University of Wisconsin-Madison "upper-division halls with more privacy - such as apartments and suites - require more square feet and higher-end finishes and Texas Tech University, Honors Hall: The main lounge facilitates interaction and collaboration. amenities. More plumbing adds to the construction costs significantly." Even with the higher cost of living, Texas Tech finds that students are increasingly willing to pay the premium prices for the independence, and the upper-division halls still remain more affordable than their off-campus competitors. While institutions carefully plan the design of residence halls for lower- and upper-division students, the messaging can be a hurdle. "The biggest challenge we have is helping the freshmen to realize that when we have them staying in our traditional or pod-style housing, it's because we actually know more about what they need as freshmen," explains Marty Sabolo, director of residence life at Northern CONTINUES 59 Bed Bug Proof Innerspring Mattresses Starting at $99/ea (800)203-2507 Custom sizes no problem! www.americanbeddingmfg.com 28 TALKING STICK sales@americanbeddingmfg.comhttp://www.americanbeddingmfg.com