One of several building projects on campus, a new dormitory for upperclassmen women was constructed this summer. While construction was still underway, the college administration and students called it the “New Dorm.”
But now it is complete with students living in it, yet the building is still only known as “New Dorm.”
Even if the college is planning to give the dorm a permanent name later, this is equivalent to forgetting to dismantle scaffolding. The college ought to give some identifier to the dorm beyond its project name.
The administration may intend the name “New Dorm” to be temporary, but no one knows for sure that that will be the case. According to past Collegian articles, it took seven years to name McIntyre Residence and 11 years for Simpson Residence.
The situation here might be similar. If the college decides to build another dormitory, it will have run out of descriptions.
A simple solution would be to give the residence hall a geographic name. Before McIntyre and Simpson had those names, they were called North and West Residences, respectively. Though New Dorm is not at the farthest end of campus, it is far enough east of Central Hall that “East Residence” would work well. Alternatively, “Union Street Residence” or some variation of that name would also suffice.
If the college refuses to give the building a proper name, the students ought to do so. Residents of the dorm should vote on a geographic name or start experimenting with different names until one sticks. Even if that chosen name is not perfect, it will still be better than the current one.
Tom Ryskamp is a senior studying music and accounting.