The fall term is winding down, but some former 13th Street Residence Hall students, who were displaced in late September 2018 because of a mold infestation, do not know where they will live come January 2019.
On Oct. 15, the students were informed that the 13th Street Residence Hall will remain closed for the rest of the academic year.
Those residents who moved to EHS 97th, The Markle, and a residence at Marymount Manhattan were given the option of moving back on-campus or being released from their contract.
Some students who chose to move back on-campus will not know where they will live until Dec. 17.
Since the initial incident, students have been given changing information about who to contact for refunds, meal plans and when they will be able to return to their previous home. This has led to some students feeling more confusion than clarity.
Rebecca Darcy, a first-year in Lang, was glad to move into a residence close to campus, The Markle, when she first had to vacate 13th street. Darcy learned she had to move again via the Oct. 15 email.
“I’m very frustrated about the lack of communication for next semester,” Darcy said. “At our current residence, The Markle, we were not informed that the lease was only until January 14.”
Students who moved to The Alabama, a student residence in Greenwich Village, the 92Y, EHS in Brooklyn, or another campus dorm can stay through spring term. In addition, all 13th Street Residence Hall students are eligible to be released from their housing contract and seek housing outside the university system.
While The New School had initially stated that 13th Street would re-open in January 2019, the university changed their decision at the recommendation in TRC Environmental Corporation’s (TRC) initial report. TRC is assessing what modifications would help prevent incidents like this in the future and will provide a new report, according to a university spokesperson. Merrie Snead, TNS communications and community relations manager, told New School Free Press that they expect TRC’s next report to come in mid-January.
Hearhee Kang, a first-year student studying interior design, will have to move from her new home on 97th Street at the end of the semester. Kang said that, while the commute can be long, she likes the community she found in her new residence.
“I don’t know where I’m living next semester,” Kang said. “I don’t want to live in Loeb or Stuy, and I heard Kerrey is full.”
There have also been changes in who students should contact if they want to be released from their housing contract. Students were initially told that they would have to file a complaint with Michelle Relyea, the senior vice president of student success. Students were later informed that they would need to contact Joyce Arias-Brown, the associate director of housing relations. The university spokesperson confirmed that this change occurred because Arias-Brown was out of the office when students were initially evacuated.
This development follows other recent changes that stray from initial announcements.
On Sept. 24, administrators said they would expand the meal plan to include dining options near displaced students’ new housing locations. However, an email sent from 13th Street Residence Hall director Meg Beyer to former residents on Oct. 4 said that they could request to be released from the meal plan and be given the remaining balance via check. If they stayed within the meal plan, students would have to eat at existing meal plan locations.
The refund would replace an expanded meal plan, according to Amy Malsin. The university cited difficulties in building relationships with new eateries in a short period of time.
Kang said that she would prefer the refund, rather than eat in the University Center cafeteria. However, Khang wishes students had known that there was a possibility that expanding the meal plan would fall through. Kang did not learn about this change until she received an email from Beyer announcing the refund option.
“I don’t like how they said that they were going to find places to eat [near EHS on 97th Street] with our meal plan, and then they changed it to a refund without telling us,” Kang said.
While Darcy recognizes TNS’s hard work, having to move has disrupted her first-year experience.
“I recognize the New School is working hard to find places for people to live,” Darcy said. “The constant change of residence has left me and many others feeling ungrounded and overwhelmed.”
Katherine Huggins contributed reporting.
Illustration by Olivia Heller
