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Life in Ward Hall

October 06, 2008

This is my sixth week at Rollins, and slowly but steadily I feel that I have come to grips with my new life here. In the days leading up to my flight to college, I remember the many concerns I had about the halls, the people I would meet and hostel life in general. I guess it is only natural for prospective students to be concerned about how the halls would turn out and more importantly whether or not life in the halls would be any fun.

In my case however, all my concerns were banished the moment I stepped into the hall I was assigned to, Ward Hall. First year students are housed either in Rex Beach Hall, Elizabeth Hall, McKean Hall, Holt Hall or Ward Hall.More on the Halls can be found through /. Ward Hall is an all freshmen coeducational hall; we have single sex floors as well as wings, with separate male/female bathrooms, where both sets of students reside. Although all the halls are special in their own way, I am personally very glad that I was assigned to Ward Hall.

From R Journal

My first reaction when I entered the building was; “Wow! This place is like a hotel!!” Indeed, the building certainly is very modern and sophisticated looking ever since it underwent a multi-million dollar renovation project during the 2007 summer break. The wooden parquet floors lend a homely feel to the floors. The card recognition system to our rooms keeps this place safe and secure. The lounge on the fourth floor is a great place to spend some time; whether watching the latest episode of “Heroes,” playing a game of pool with friends or just chilling out in the huge balcony on a Sunday afternoon with an awesome view of lake Virginia as the backdrop.

From R Journal

So, the next question would be how is life in these halls? I would say, “simply great.” The Resident Assistants (RA) and the Hall Directors from Residential Life are always concerned about making our stay as enjoyable as possible. RAs are upper classmen who are there to help one out with any concerns or problems we encounter during the stay. They do their best to solve the problem and even if it is not possible for them to help, they always know someone who can help us.

At Rollins I feel that each student is valued and everyone’s problem is taken seriously with professional help available for almost every imaginable situation. When Hurricane Fay struck Florida, the College acted very responsibly to take every precaution and kept us safe inside our halls and one of the things I appreciated during the period was how the RAs and Hall directors planned different activities on different floors; A Harry Potter movie marathon on one floor to different board games and even small social events were conducted all inside the same hall. In general the authorities here go out of their way in order to keep everyone happy and satisfied. This is not only the case during an emergency; we do have frequent movie shows and pizza or ice cream socials during the course of normal life as well. So, all in all I am really happy with hostel life and how my college experience has turned out, and I am sure it will get even better in the coming days.

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