Update!

The Student Housing Advisory Committee has held two meetings to discuss details such as Operations, Residence Life, Marketing and Facilities for the new student housing on UNM Main Campus. The meetings have been very helpful in identifying key topics the committee would like to present to the management committee.
The next meeting will be held on Friday, 25th. Current topics being discussed:
Application and Contract process
Assignment and Hall Transfer process
Hall Security and response for emergency situations

Stay tuned for updates as to what the committee recommends for these topics and many others!

Preliminary Materials

The following link directs you to the presentation made by ACC to the Board of Regents-Finance and Facilities committee on February 10, 2011.
http://ldc.unm.edu/UserFiles/BOR_FF_PM_021011.pdf
The same presentation will be made at the full Board of Regents meeting tomorrow, February 15, 2011, at 9am in the Roberts Room, Scholes Hall.
For more information and additional documents presented by ACC and Lobo Development, please follow the following link: http://ldc.unm.edu/planning.php?Page=planning

Putting the Pieces Together

Various committees have been coordinated to put all of the pieces together with regards to the new ACC/UNM Housing project on the UNM Main Campus. Most recently, a committee has been organized, charged with many different items that will most likely be included in the final contract. Such topics to be discussed: management of the building, RA/RHA composition, training methods, etc. Following is a note from Jenna Crabb, Director of UNM Career Services. Jenna points out what the committee has been charged to do, some specific items the committee will focus on along with the anticipated outcome of the group.

Hello!   I have been asked to be the facilitator for the Committee on New Residence Hall Management on Main Campus.  This committee will meet to discuss the most appropriate management structure that will benefit UNM students.  We hope that through this committee we will have open and honest discussions about how the new residence halls on main campus should be managed, including the reporting and communication structure, and how the relationship between ACC and UNM will work; we will explore how other privatized operations work at other institutions (using both ACC and others); create a workable timeline for our group.  At the conclusion of this committee, we hope to make a formal proposal and recommendation to the Joint Management Committee.    The committee will consist of students representing various organizations within the residence hall system and ASUNM, Community Directors within the residence halls, and UNM staff, including myself. 

I have a vested interest in making sure the students, Residence Life Staff and community have a voice in our new residence halls.  I started my professional career as an Area Coordinator in Hokona, and supervised at one time or another most of the halls on our campus.  Working at UNM with student is my passion.  I believe in our community at UNM. 

Through this blog – I will keep you updated on our discussions and eventually share our proposal with you – our community. 

Please visit the blog regularly for updates and information!

Thank you,

Jenna Crabb

Director, Career Services

Board of Regents Meeting 2/15/11

The Preliminary Materials of ACC with regards to the UNM Housing project have been presented at both the Lobo Development Board and the Finance and Facilities Committee meetings. Both organizations have forwarded the preliminary materials to the full Board of Regents meeting. The meeting will be held Tuesday, February 15th, 2011 in Scholes Hall, Roberts Room at 9:00am.

Planning

With any new project, input is imperative to the success and acceptance of the proposal. ACC utilized a planning diligence process to compile information from students' opinions and perceptions regarding current accomodations, price points and the decision-making process.* Focus groups, student surveys and design summits were conducted to gain insight into what students are looking for with regards to student housing.

Focus Groups

The initial focus groups were administered in 2009 and have occurred since. ACC engaged first- and second-year students as well as high school students in the Albuquerque/Rio Rancho area. ACC used Turning Point technology to collect response data in real-time; this method allowed the particpants and ACC to discuss the findings with the respondents just minutes after they answered. Results varied from the high school group to the current student population, primarily because of the current living situations of the different groups:

• High School Students-
• The consensus was that private bedrooms would be the preferred unit, not shared bedrooms and anything with a full-size bed would be best. The students were interested in on-site amenities that focused on developing community and creating an academic environment. Generally, these students were less interested in gaming areas than in study/social lounges.*
• UNM Undergraduate Students-
• The overwhelming consensus was that it is important for freshman to live in resident halls and that once this happens, more students will stay on campus because beds will be available in suite and apartment style halls. Students reported believing that units that improved visual privacy and shared restrooms within the unit, not hall-style, would be more attractive to incoming students....Students felt the best design for new amenity packages would include building amenities for laundry, study space, lounge space with soft seating and outdoor green areas.*

Student Surveys

The student survey was administered through the UNM Student Voice program. In total, more than 880 students completed the survey. The results supported the idea of students moving off campus, or not living on campus at all, because on-campus housing does not provide a graduated product cycle.

Design Summits

Open forums were held over approximately a three month period in the SUB Atrium for ideal exposure to the UNM community. Visit the Lobo Development Website to access all of the presentations that were held along with other pdf documents pertaining to the campus housing project.


*For more information, refer to the Strategic Housing Plan, University of New Mexico, December 1, 2010

Strategic Housing Plan

The University of New Mexico, Lobo Development and American Campus Communities (ACC) have been working together for nearly three years now in an effort to modernize and enhance the UNM campus housing. The UNM Strategic Housing Plan is a working document that details the overall objectives, approaches and recommendations of ACC to the University with regards to student housing. ACC has identified four key objectives for the Student Housing Plan that will shape the main campus developments:

• Improve the quality of UNM's student housing communities through:
• Modernizing the product for current and future student needs
• Introducing a multi-tiered unit product cycle
• Incorporate living-learning features that facilitate academic achievement and improve graduation rates.
• Create phasing scenarios that bring new communities online with minimal disruption to UNM's existing housing capacity and revenue
• Increase UNM's on-campus undergraduate residency rates
• Incorporate recreation, dining and parking facilities that serve the residential communities and pragmatically connect to the larger campus.*

The development of new campus housing will provide UNM a modern product to help recruit and retain students. ACC is aligning all of their plans with the objectives outlined by the University; the four considerations that will shape the future communities include: Improving Housing Value, Academic Excellence, Campus Integration, and Student Life. These four objectives are crucial to the success of the housing program and furthermore the residents of such communities.

A good strategic housing plan is a living document that responds to a diverse student body at the various stages of higher education. The plan should be able to change in response to: campus development, enrollment trends and the market.

*For more information, refer to the Strategic Housing Plan, University of New Mexico, December 1, 2010

Vice President Eliseo "Cheo" Torres' letter to the Editor, Daily Lobo (date)

Welcome back Lobos! I hope you had a relaxing break and are ready for a great spring semester.   In an effort to keep students informed about what’s happening at UNM with regard to Student Housing on campus, my office has created a new blog entitled:  “UNM Housing:  Your Source for Up-to-the Minute Info!” which can be found at  http://unmhousingupdates.blogspot.com/.  I believe the blog will be the most comprehensive and successful means of communicating to UNM Students, Faculty, Staff and community about what’s happening in campus housing.   

The blog will serve as a means of communication between UNM administrators and the UNM community. It will provide an opportunity to engage in a meaningful conversation regarding current housing initiatives.  The blog will allow you to: track housing updates, view frequently asked questions, see photos, ask questions in an interactive forum and see project timeline (including where we started and where we plan to be). 

Please visit this blog frequently as I will continually be apprising students of any changes, developments and other pertinent information.

Cheo Torres

Vice President, UNM Student Affairs