This is a picture of the west dormitory of St. Francis College, 1915. (courtesy Brenner Library)

By QU Media staff writers: Kyron Dunae, Brianna Graham, Freja Hansen, Jasmine Hopkins, Carter Lenzen, Angelina Pagliaccio, Elliott Sieger, and Rochelle Witzke

Hector Ramirez had to move from Padua Hall to Helein Hall due to a lack of space in his first assigned room. Ramirez is a student at Quincy University and wanted a single room for his junior year. He spent the summer of 2024 thinking he was going to live in Padua. However, when he arrived at QU for the fall semester to move in, his assignment had changed and he moved Helein due to issues with space.

“I thought I was going to live in Padua because that’s what I was told. I would have had lived there but there wasn’t enough space,” Ramirez said. 

Housing at QU is nuanced. The amount of space in which students have to operate is not enough. Students have compared living in dorms at QU to a ‘box’. The number of roommates cuts the space in half. 

Studies have proven that students who live on campus are more likely to earn higher GPAs, graduate earlier than students who live off-campus, and report an overall higher quality of life. However, due to the circumstances that students are dealing with now, those studies may be outdated. 

Space at QU in general is one of the most discussed topics on campus. Students believe there is not enough space in the rooms, which causes issues in its own right. The QU website provides the measurements for the rooms as follows: Willer Hall Suites 11 ‘5′ x 16; Friars Hall 11’6 x 19’6; Helein Hall, Padua Hall & Garner Hall 10’ 6′ x 15 ‘6. There is also not that much space in between beds between the beds, with 6′ separating the two. 

QU and its housing teams work together with admissions to track numbers of students so they can accommodate what students are demanding. Kortarius Finley is the director of housing operations at QU. He says he knows that students say they are crowded, and says he sympathizes with students.

“I wish I was able to provide everyone single rooms and upperclassmen housing like the SLC, thats just not feasible, at least right now,” Finley said.  

QU’s population grows each year, which affects the space that is provided. More people are coming to QU and engaging in the community, but that means less space. 

Proximity Parking: Access and Availability

Students also have opinions on parking availability as a result of dorm crowding. Students have spoken out about how hard it is to find parking spots. This leads to students having to park in lots away from their dorms or on the streets which can lead to a handful of issues. Situations like car thefts and break-ins have become prominent this past semester. 

There are over 400 total parking spaces on campus. 140 of those spots are on streets adjacent to campus. 73 of the spots are in the lot in front of Helein and Garner Halls. 243 of the spots are in C lot, which is near Padua Hall. North Campus lot has roughly 140 parking spots. However, three lots on campus are used strictly for administration and employees.

To have a car and park on campus, students must register their cars and display parking passes. 65% of new students in the 2024-2025 year registered for parking passes, which equates to about 169 students. 

Robert Copley is the head of security at Quincy University and shared his thoughts on the parking landscape at QU. He was asked about his opinion on the influx of students in relation to space. 

“I don’t think it is an issue, more people are coming to campus and that can only spell good things for the community,” Copley said. 

Parking remains a critical conversation point when discussing space and convenience. The conversation around parking is just one more way students are engaging in broader discussions about space, safety, and convenience in campus life.

The growing pains at QU are clear. With more students choosing to live on campus and bring their cars, space has become a major concern. Hector Ramirez’s sudden move from Padua Hall to Helein Hall is just one example of how students are being affected by limited housing options.

While QU promotes the benefits of living on campus, many students feel the reality doesn’t match the promise. Issues with living conditions and a lack of available parking are fueling student frustrations. 

As QU continues to grow, it faces the challenge of balancing expansion with maintaining a comfortable living and learning environment. Students are proud to be a part of QU’s community, but they are also calling for improvements to ensure that the benefits of living on campus truly outweigh the struggles.

The history of dorm living on QU’s campus

Quincy University was established in 1860, at the time the university was known as St. Francis Solanus College. St. Francis Solanus College was originally located on the corner of 8th and Main and was founded by Fr. Anselm Mueller and a small group of Franciscans from Germany. In 1871 classes were moved to the current campus at 1800 College Avenue.

Solano Hall was one of the first buildings on campus aside from Francis Hall. Solano was built in 1919 as the St. Aloysius Orphans Home and was sold to the school in 1946. Between 1946 and 1965 it was used as a men’s dorm and was then turned over to the university’s music department. The building sat right next to what is currently Friars’ Field on main campus. That building was demolished in 2008.

“My mom use to drop me off there for piano lessons. My teacher was this very German woman from Germany. She was a very good teacher but very strict. Her name was Leonora Suppan-Gehrich,” Saadia Ali Aschemann said.

Cupertine Hall was built next in 1922, right behind Francis Hall. It was originally built as a laundry building then in the 1950’s it was used as a men’s dorm for a short while before it was converted into a writing building for a student newspaper called The Falcon. Some of The Falcon’s old papers can be found in Brenner Library.

Stillwell Hall became part of the university in 1941 as a gift to the school. It is located on 1601 Maine where it sits as the local Quincy Museum. During World War II it was used by army nurses and air cadets. After the war it was used as a women’s dorm. In the 1960s when other dorms were built, women from Stillwell moved back on campus and the house was given back to the original family who turned it into the modern day museum. 

Prior to 1945 all student housing on campus was in Friars’ Hall up to the 4th floor and the attic.

Vesta Simmon Hall was a women’s dorm from the 1940s to the 1950s until it was put back under private ownership and then demolished some time after 2012. Its original address was 1616 Spring Street.

Bonfoey Hall was another hall of campus used during the 1950s. It was a used as a women’s dorm before it reverted back to a private residence. Its original address is 1651 Maine Street.

In 1957 Woods Apartments and Augustine Hall were built and finished in 1958. Woods was used as apartments for married couples with families because there were a decent amount of people or married couples after the war going to school for an education. Woods was named after past President Julian Woods, he was president from 1952-1963. Woods is still in use today as dorms and for the most part has two rooms per apartment for students to share.

Augustine Hall was built as a men’s dorm and used as one until the 1980s. It was used for storage until it was torn down in the 1990s. The building used to sit across from The Cafe where C Lot is located today.

Centennial Hall was built in 1960 and still stands. It was named after the university’s centennial year of existence but in 2011 was renamed Helein Hall. It was originally built as a women’s dorm but turned co-ed where one wing was for men and the other women. It eventually became just for men. 

Garner was built in 1963 as a women’s dorm. It currently stands on the main campus. Padua was built in 1966 as a male dorm.

The Lind Street Apartments were built in 1970. They were renamed Willer Hall in 1993 and has been co-ed and for upper-class students since it was built.

The Student Living Center also known as the SLC was built in 2011. It was built as a co-ed building intended for upperclassmen. It has apartment style living with rooms of three students each.

The SLC is the newest living structure on campus but at 14 years old it is starting to show its age. Older buildings like Padua, Friars’, and Willer are difficult to maintain and are not built for modern usage.

Students have a choice as to where they live on campus, sort of

The housing lottery selection is an annual routine that often induces anxiety among students. Coming with controversy, students often battle tooth-and-neck for their desired housing. While the parameters for the lottery are set in stone, special circumstances among the student body prompt concerns about fairness and objectivity. 

The beginning process of the housing lottery starts with signing a housing contract. This is a step-by-step outline of codes and procedures students must follow as a resident on campus to live in university housing. 

Acknowledging the student handbook, and everything that falls under its jurisdiction is a requirement to live on campus.

After submitting the housing agreement, the process of lottery selection starts around mid-March. Students are assigned a number, based on credits hours, GPA and the timeliness that the housing agreement was submitted. 

Freshmen are classified as having obtained 23 credit hours or less. Sophomores are 24-47 hours, Juniors are 48-85, and seniors have 86+ hours.

Incoming students have a rather simple process of choosing where they live, because it’s not much of a choice at all. 

The lottery begins near the end of March, with emails from housing director Kortarious Finely. The QU portal hosts all information students need to request roommates, find their lottery numbers, and eventually take part in the housing lottery. 

There are a few exceptions to students’ participation in the lottery. Orientation leaders, resident assistants, and a few students living in designated houses do not partake in the lottery.

A new addition to the lottery in 2025 was the option to keep a student’s current housing, if their credit hours exceed the required amount if they were to opt into the same housing through the lottery. 

For example, if a student wanted to keep their dorm in the SLC, they would need to have at least 80 credit hours, since normal circumstances would dictate that having 80 credit hours would guarantee them a spot in the SLC if they went through the lottery.

For some this is a stress reliever, for others on campus – disparity in the lottery numbers has been an ongoing issue. 

“Honestly, the housing lottery just feels super random. I did everything right and still got one of the worst time slots. It doesn’t seem fair when some people get lucky and others are stuck scrambling,” Alyssa Welko said. 

Welko, who is a junior transferring after this academic year, also accredits the housing system as one of her frustrations for leaving.  Housing has been an issue on campus, especially with class sizes getting bigger each year and the amount of dorms available staying the same.

“I get that people are frustrated, but from what I’ve seen as an RA, the system actually works pretty well. There’s just a lot of students and limited space—it’s never gonna make everyone happy,” Alexis Stufflebeam, an RD of the Garner Hall, said.

Housing is a vital aspect to being a college student. Not getting the housing you want, or sometimes need, leads to students becoming increasingly frustrated with the system.

So what is the solution? Should the housing department be more transparent with how the system actually works? Should academic merit not be a consideration but based more on class rank?

Vinny Olson, a sophomore who’s going through the system for the first time, doesn’t think all hope is lost. 

“I don’t think the system is totally broken, but no one really knows how it works. Like, we get our lottery numbers and that’s it—no explanation. It’d be way less stressful if they were just more upfront about the process,” Olson said.

The lottery is a complex system, but with active student voices vouching for a more upfront process, change could be made. 

A look inside Quincy University’s student housing: from traditional dorms to apartment living

Where you live in college can make a big difference. At QU, many on-campus housing options fit all kinds of preferences, whether you are just starting out as a freshman or you are a junior looking for more space and privacy. From traditional dorms to apartment-style living, QU’s got you covered.

Helma Cruz, a freshman living in Garner, says it is all about the shared journey.

“The best thing about living in Garner is getting to live with all the freshmen like, you are all going through the same experience. The worst part might be the laundry, though,” Cruz said

If you are a first-year female student, chances are that you will end up in Garner Hall. It is a traditional dorm for women, and it is kind of the go-to spot for getting that classic college experience.

The rooms are either single or double, the bathrooms are shared, and there is a common area where you can hang out, watch TV, cook in the kitchen, or play ping pong.

“Garner really helped me make friends fast. Everyone’s new here, so it’s easy to start conversations and find your people,” Cruz said.

Willer Hall: A Step Up with Suite-Style Living

Willer Hall is where things start to feel a little more grown-up. It’s for women and men, but it is suite-style, so you get more privacy. Marina Oberschmid lives in Willer and loves the extra space well, most of it.

“The best thing about living in Willer Hall is the living room and having our own bathroom,” Oberschmid said. 

Each suite has its own living room and two bathrooms, which is a plus for anyone who is not a fan of waiting for showers.

“Sometimes, well the thing is that it is so cold to live there. And the room is too small for only two people,” Oberschmid said. 

The Student Living Center: apartment vibes on campus

If students are looking for something even more independent, the Student Living Center might be a good spot. These are apartment-style units with their own bedrooms, kitchens, living rooms, and private bathrooms.

It is perfect if students are into cooking their own meals or just want more of that off-campus but still on-campus feeling. Ella Wolfard, who lives in the Student Living Center, says it is the perfect mix of freedom and convenience.

“Living in SLC feels like having your own place, but you’re still part of campus life, I love having a kitchen it’s nice to cook something when you’re tired of dining hall food,” Wolfard said.

Woods Apartments also provide a mix of single and double rooms with a more independent living atmosphere and apartment-style as well.

“The downside is probably just that there are so many dishes to clean,” Wolfard said. 

For men on campus, there are Helein and Padua Halls, which offer a more traditional dorm setup with single and double rooms. Both dorms offer shared bathrooms as well.  

QU also offers campus houses, which are a great option for upperclassmen who want a more home vibe with friends.

Friars Hall, also for women but upperclassmen, offers both single and double rooms with community bathrooms.

The vital roles of people who support campus living

Much of the student experience outside the classroom is shaped not only by professors and administrators but also by a dedicated group of student leaders and support staff who help maintain a healthy, safe, and welcoming campus environment.

Among the most essential of these roles are Resident Assistants, student employees who manage residential halls, provide peer support, and help cultivate a sense of community. Their duties extend far beyond unlocking dorm room doors or checking for quiet hours violations; they are first responders, mentors, event organizers, and leaders tasked with fostering inclusivity and order in campus housing.

Recent changes to QU’s RA selection policies have raised concerns among students about transparency, job security, and the evolving expectations placed on student support roles.

RA’s at Quincy are trained to handle a wide range of responsibilities. From conflict mediation and crisis response to event planning and administrative tasks, RAs serve as the university’s front line for student life within residence halls. They coordinate floor meetings, address policy violations, help students resolve roommate disputes, and act as liaisons between residents and the Office of Housing and Residence Life.

Jordan Settumba, a current RA, said the role requires constant availability and leadership. He emphasized that RAs are often the first to respond in times of crisis, offering assistance long before professional staff can arrive.

“They do everything from planning community-building events to responding to emergency situations,” Settumba said. “We’re there to support students emotionally, socially, and practically and sometimes it’s overwhelming.”

RAs receive free housing and a leadership opportunity in return for their service. For many, including international students with limited work options, the position provides critical financial relief.

A Role without a written contract

Despite the weight of the position, QU does not provide RAs with a formal contract outlining job expectations, terms of employment, or reappointment criteria. Aside from basic work-study forms or financial aid paperwork, there are no signed agreements detailing what RAs are expected to do or how performance is evaluated.

In previous years, some students were offered verbal assurances that they could remain in the role for multiple years if they performed well. Those informal promises are now being scrutinized following unexpected dismissals during the most recent cycle.

While RAs are a cornerstone of student support, QU offers additional leadership roles such as Orientation Leaders, and Student Ambassadors. These students support the university in a range of functions, from welcoming new students to representing the student body in conversations with administration.

Though rewarding, many of these positions also lack formal training and structured evaluation, which students believe could strengthen the leadership culture on campus.

“Leadership at QU is about more than titles,” Settumba said. “It’s about being involved, showing up, and trying to improve things for the people around you. But we can’t keep asking students to take on these roles without giving them the tools and support to succeed.”

A call for reform and transparency in hiring practices

With the upcoming academic year on the horizon, students are calling on university leadership to provide written contracts for RA positions, outline clear expectations, and establish consistent, transparent evaluation methods.

Many also advocate for better training around emergency preparedness, conflict resolution, and administrative procedures, to ensure students in support roles are equipped to handle the responsibilities they are given.

While QU prides itself on embodying its Franciscan values of service, care, and community, some students feel the current system falls short in supporting those who dedicate themselves to helping others.

Students can help notify facilities about structural issues

“It took seven maintenance requests to fix a toilet and a leaking water heater,” Brandon Granger said.

Along with space, QU students have experienced structural problems with living situations, from broken water heaters to faulty toilets and moldy AC units. The maintenance department depends on students filing “work tickets” to notify the department of a problem. The maintenance staff is self-admittedly stretched thin on campus. 

The maintenance department is not controlled by the university itself but by National Management Resources, a university subcontractor.

According to its website, National aims to leave the facilities maintenance and management to the experts. National has provided facilities management services for over 40 years. We focus exclusively on education, including K-12 facilities, boarding schools, colleges, and universities nationwide. Our team of professionals is dedicated to your facilities and your existing staff. We know your school’s demands and are here to help increase enrollment.

Students are frustrated with completion times for tickets. Students say limited staff means some things that people deemed necessary to live in adequate housing started slipping through the cracks. Isaac Drew was a National student employee and believes that all workers are over-exerting themselves in everything they do.

“We were overworked and our conditions were sub-par, so I had to go and find a new job that pays me more and has much better working conditions,” Drew said.

Something as simple as having a working toilet should be a fundamental need to be kept up with and maintained as a dorm resident or property owner, but for one suite in the SLC, students say that seemed to be too much to ask for. 

During the beginning of his senior football season, Granger tried to use the restroom facilities in his dorm after practice but noticed the toilet would not flush no matter what he did, so he made a maintenance request to fix the problem. The first action taken by the maintenance department was taken ten days later, and the fix only lasted about two weeks.

“All I wanted to do was just use the bathroom in my room, but I can’t because it takes maintenance too long to finally fix something that should be automatically fixed the first time,” Granger said. 

Granger had to wait a while longer to have working facilities. It took four months from when he first reported the problem to when it was fixed with a replacement toilet. 

“I would have to either go out to the lobby of the SLC or go all the way up to the third floor to my girlfriend’s room just to relieve myself,” Granger said.

Other students reported a variety of problems around campus. These include moldy AC units, leaking water heaters, windows that cannot be opened, doors that do not lock, inadequate lighting and restroom facilities in the on-campus houses, broken external doors to dorm buildings, and broken elevators that get stuck with students inside them.

Students would like to see more help for National staff, and quicker response time to tickets.

Housekeeping efforts to keep up with self-inflicted maintenance issues

Housing conditions in dorms such as Garner and Padua Hall, have become a significant concern for students. The building’s maintenance issues, including health hazards, cleanliness problems, and inadequate amenities, have raised concerns among residents, and the lack of proper attention to these issues are affecting the students quality of life.

One of the most pressing issues in Padua Hall is the sight of cockroaches in the bathrooms. These pests have been a constant problem for students living in the building since the removal of trash cans, particularly in the common bathrooms. Cockroaches, known to carry diseases and allergens, pose a serious health risk to students. The presence of cockroaches in the bathrooms is not only unfortunate but also hazardous, as these pests can contaminate food and surfaces, leading to the spread of bacteria and viruses. 

Despite numerous complaints from students, the situation has persisted without any observable action being taken to address it. For residents, this has created an environment that is unsafe. The lack of pest control exacerbates the issue, leaving students vulnerable to health hazards that could otherwise be avoided with proper maintenance.

Another major issue at Padua Hall is the absence of trash cans in the entire building. This may seem like a minor oversight, but it has led to significant challenges for residents. Without trash cans in common areas, students are left with no place to dispose of their waste, leading to trash in hallways, bathrooms, and dorm rooms. 

Some students choose to take their frustration out by leaving trash and other items in inappropriate areas. The student handbook lists fines for trash violations, but many times the perpetrator is unknown.

“The lack of trash cans is a major problem. We end up piling up trash in our rooms because there’s nowhere else to put it.” Tiernan Stynes said.

The absence of a designated area for waste disposal can encourage the accumulation of trash in personal spaces, attracting pests like insects, which further contributes to the unsanitary conditions in the building. The lack of trash cans also creates an overall sense of neglect, as it suggests that the building is not being properly maintained or cared for.

In addition to pest problems and trash-related issues, the lack of hot water in Padua Hall has been another major complaint. During the transition to spring semester, the absence of hot water for extended periods left students who were still on campus without basic comfort and hygiene. 

Students who are already adjusting to the stress of academics and campus life are further burdened by the inability to take warm showers, especially during winter. 

“Not having hot water for weeks during winter was unacceptable,” Max Booher said.

For weeks, students were forced to endure cold water, which not only created discomfort but also raised concerns about the building’s plumbing system and maintenance. The lack of responsiveness to the issue, with no clear explanation or resolution for weeks until it was restored, demonstrated a lack of consideration for the well-being of the students residing in the building.

The overall cleanliness of the halls has been a point of conflict among students. The building’s common areas, such as hallways and lounges, are often poorly maintained, with visible dirt and dust accumulating over time. 

”The lack of attention to problems like cleaning makes us believe our environment is being neglected,” John Kelly said.

 Students are left to clean up after themselves or deal with unsanitary conditions, which is unacceptable in a dorm setting where residents should expect to have a minimum standard of cleanliness.

 Students hope these issues will be addressed by the university to ensure that students’ health and well-being are prioritized. A thorough and consistent approach to maintenance, pest control, and cleanliness is necessary to create a safe and supportive environment for students.

Living off-campus, does it make sense?

Those who are familiar with the city of Quincy’s rental housing options know of its dreary state. High costs, rundown rentals, and sometimes shabby landlords have caused Quincy’s housing issues to sit at the forefront of problems being addressed by city leadership.

In the 2021 Adams County Needs Assessment, housing was discovered to be one of the top five issues of the area.

An alliance named Q-RILE (Quincians for Registration, Inspection, Licensing, and Enactment) was established out of concern for renters in Quincy who could be living in unsafe housing from neglectful landlords. The group succeeded in placing a non-binding referendum on a recent ballot. The citizens of Quincy told their leaders they wanted change in the way the city addressed unsafe living conditions in rental units.

Here is housing data from the 2024 Adams County Community Needs Assessment.

A two-bedroom apartment is $875, as stated by the Fair Market Rent (FMR). To make rent, a rentee needs to make $16.83 an hour, assuming full-time employment status. The estimated hourly wage for renters in Adams County is $14.33.

Around 20% of area rentals have at least one of the following housing problems:

• Incomplete kitchen facilities
• Incomplete plumbing facilities
• More than one person per room
• Cost burden greater than 50%
  • A cost burden of 30% or less is considered affordable housing. This means that 30% of a household’s income should be used for paying rent.

Survey of Quincy University’s off-campus students

Students who live off-campus were sent a survey to better understand their side of the housing predicament. 15 students responded to the survey.

67% of respondents stated that they live with their parents/guardians, because of this they also stated they do not pay rent.

62% of respondents stated their rental homes were in excellent condition upon moving in. 20% stated good and 13% stated fair. Most respondents found their rental through word of mouth or through online listings.

When questioned about their issues with off-campus housing, 62% of respondents stated that the commute (including time, parking, weather, and gas money) were a notable issue. The next highest issue was campus engagement, with 23% of respondents stating the issue.

“I wish there were more events to get commuters to go. Most of us are already home by the time stuff happens, or it’s dorm/team related events,” said an anonymous off-campus resident.

Other issues include time management, frozen water during the winter, and feelings of being unsure of how to live on their own.

What does this mean?

This data shows that the majority of students who live off campus live with their parents/guardians. Students who are not from this area choose to live on campus, rather than rent elsewhere in the city of Quincy.

While Quincy’s housing predicament is an ongoing issue, there have been recent moves to improve parts of renting.

For all of the housing issues on campus, there are similar situations off campus. Living on campus can lead to stronger student engagement, while living off campus allows students to live at home and save money. Students in Quincy have options, but also want a say in improving their on-campus living situations.