Dorms?

Eidda · 05-15-2009, 09:56 PM

Does anyone know how the dorms at Grinnell are?

bethievt · 05-16-2009, 07:32 AM

The dorms vary a lot. Some are really old, some new. All shapes and sizes. The first one you'll be assigned to. The later ones you get by room draws. Answer your housing questionnaire as honestly as you can so they can make your best roommate match. Sleeping habits are really important. My son has loved both of his dorms so far. It's mostly about the people in them.

M's Mom · 05-17-2009, 07:40 AM

S opted for substance free housing, which means he got one of the new dorms. He's going back next year due to a good housing draw.

Eidda · 05-17-2009, 11:15 AM

Yeah, I sort of wished I signed up for Substance Free housing since the dorms are nicer but I didn't. I don't use substances but I'm not against using them.

One more question, I don't know if you know but are all of the floors coed?

bethievt · 05-17-2009, 02:10 PM

I don't know, but I sent out an e-mail to ask my son.

bethievt · 05-17-2009, 05:55 PM

Eidaa, my son says there are girl-only and guy-only floors at Grinnell. If you want one, you should let them know.

IlikeDice · 05-19-2009, 04:32 PM

after a year at grinnell, i can say that there are most definitely different atmospheres between the three campuses at grinnell (that is, north, east, south).

north: athletes typically live here, and drinking games (beer pong, quarters, etc) are taken much more seriously than any other campus. other drugs are less emphasized.

east: i want to say that east is just neutral. east has a higher concentration of LAN parties (parties where people hook up their computers in close proximity to play certain games), but also its fair share of beer pong get-togethers. definitely has less atmospheric quality, and feels much more sterile. these dorms are nice, and you would be lucky to get rooms on the third floors of most of them, as they have vaulted ceilings.

south: known generally as the hippy campus. while drinking is just as prevalent here as on north campus, other drugs (and by that, i only mean marijuana, not things like coke or heroin) are much more prevalent. people tend to treat things like drinking games much less competitively than people on north campus, but hipsters are prevalent in this area. be wary of fights about music you've never heard of, and will probably never listen to again.

in terms of niceness/condition, south and north campus are on par, while east campus is technically "better" (because it's new; i would never, ever live there). all i can say is that when you get to campus, you'll know which campus you belong to.

bethievt · 05-19-2009, 06:28 PM

Ilike Dice

I would agree. It is mostly about the people, not the dorms.

Eidda · 05-19-2009, 07:21 PM

Thanks so much for the information! It's been really helpful.

stepherzzz · 05-31-2009, 11:42 PM

Hi Eidda. I've been at Grinnell for a year now and I personally think you're probably not missing out on anything in not opting for sub-free living. The dorms are not necessarily nicer (AT ALL): one is on South Campus (James) and is fairly popular because of its location, Hannibal Kershaw is just like any other East Campus dorm, and Smith is pretty well-regarded but is not widely considered the nicest North Campus dorm by any means, but that's probably because most people don't opt for sub-free housing and therefore don't consider it.

The dorms do vary a lot. IlikeDice's descriptions are accurate. Whether or not a dorm is "good" is all a matter of opinion. Specifically, though, here's how I feel about the dorms at Grinnell:

- I lived in Norris last year. First years get put in every dorm on campus, but because Norris is typically pretty disliked, a lot of us ended up there. Now, Norris is disliked because of the BUILDING, not because of the atmosphere. It is unattractive and the hallways are incredibly skinny because the dorm was constructed to be riot-proof. The walls are also paper thin, but the doubles are pretty nicely sized. I enjoyed my floor immensely because of the awesome community we had. So, even though I was in what most people consider the "worst" dorm on campus, I enjoyed it. (Also, like all of the East Campus dorms, it had air conditioning, which was nice for about 2 months of the year.)
- Other than Norris, there are no really "bad" dorms. Personally, even though East Campus is new, I would NEVER want to live there. I find the dorms sterile and hospital-like. A lot of people on campus feel the same way I do, but there are many people who enjoy the air conditioning. Of the East Campus dorms, Lazier is especially popular because it's central and has tons of windows. Rathje is the least popular because it's farthest north.
- South and North Campus are both pretty popular in general. South campus does tend to attract the hippie crowd. I like the South Campus loggia and Main Hall in general, so that's where I chose to live next year. Actually, there are a lot of reasons I chose Main (I had a fairly good room draw number): laundry in the dorm, Bob's Underground Cafe, Gardner Lounge, and proximity to town.

You just get placed in a dorm your first year, so you can't really choose. But there are definitely positive things about every dorm on campus, and I REALLY enjoyed residential life my first year.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask.

Edit:: There are a few male-only and female-only floors, but most are coed. Starting next year, there will be gender neutral housing in both Younker and Loose. This means that guys and girls will be able to room together.

chicagoarea · 06-25-2009, 08:26 PM

Re: Co-ed dorms

In 2007, my then first year D lived in Read where her floor was co-ed. In addition the residents voted to make the two bathrooms on the floor unisex. Bathroom usage was never an issue.

bethievt · 06-27-2009, 07:29 AM

That's funny, Stepherzzz, my son was in Norris his first year also and had a great time. The doubles are pretty big and his floor-mates were just great.

sabaray · 07-17-2009, 01:25 PM

Interesting to see that not much has changed re: the dorms since I was a freshman in 1981- except for the addition of East Campus. Norris was widely reviled but it seemed everyone there had a lot of fun together; North Campus was for jocks and South for hippies. My freshman year they were overenrolled- there were four people in triples, private dining rooms were converted to housing; you name it. But it was a great year and our floor had a great time together (all female).

phishsticks · 07-24-2009, 06:02 PM

does anyone have pictures of the inside of Norris?

bethievt · 07-25-2009, 06:38 PM

What are you wondering about, phishsticks? The hallways are narrow. Only the 4th floor had its own lounge but there's a big one with kitchen on the ground floor. The rooms I've seen were standard dorm rooms. The doubles had 2 of everything: closet, desk, desk chair, dresser, bed and my son's double had one big row of shelves lining one wall under the windows. Air conditioned. Nothing fancy, but everything you really need.