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Co-ed Dorm Rooms Coming To Columbia
By
Ben Muessig
Published Dec 6, 2009
Modified Dec 6, 2009
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By
Ben Muessig
Published Dec 6, 2009
Modified Dec 6, 2009
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In a move that the Post reports will soon allow Columbia University undergrads "to live in sin — on their parents' dime," students will be permitted to shack up with roommates of the opposite sex in dorm rooms. The so-called "gender-neutral" housing policy could be implemented next fall, allowing sophomores, juniors and seniors to choose roommates of the any gender.
Supporters say the new policy will make things easier for gay and lesbian students who might not feel comfortable living with roommates of the same gender. For heterosexual couples, it could "put an end to the infamous 'walk of shame' — the early-morning cross-campus trek back to a separate dorm in the previous night's clothes," according to the tabloid. Some commenters on Columbia's Bwog believe the policy will mainly benefit buddies of the opposite sex who have different sexual orientations. But other Ive Leaguers say that if heterosexual couples are allowed to live together, bad things might happen. "It will damage the community on the floor if a couple moves in together and then is fighting all the time," said said council representative Alex Frouman. "It's incredibly difficult to get a room change. The proposal is bad because of that risk that could adversely effect everyone on the hall."
Unsurprisingly, some Columbia parents, like Laura Hannon, were floored by the proposal. "I was shocked enough last year when we moved our son in and we saw that guys and girls shared a bathroom on the hall...If it had been our daughter, we would have turned around and walked straight out." Don't tell Hannon, but NYU has a similar policy that allows two men and two women to share apartment-style dorm rooms.
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