Incoming first-year students for Duke University’s class of 2022 will not have the opportunity to choose their roommate after the school decided students were choosing roommates with “very similar backgrounds to their own.”
“In the last few years, we’ve seen increasing numbers of students who have pre-selected roommates, often with very similar backgrounds to their own,” an announcement letter reads. “While this may make the transition to college seem somewhat easier, we’ve also seen that this can work against your having the best educational and social experience in the long term.”
The letter, which was emailed specifically to Duke’s incoming freshman class, was written by University Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta as well as Dean and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Stephen Nowicki.
“Among the principles that drives our first-year design is offering the best opportunity for you to meet and interact with students who have very different backgrounds from your own,” Moneta and Nowicki state.
The university appears very confident that placing inclusivity, in this case administratively forced, as a desideratum for future success is most beneficial for students. Not all students feel the same way.
Ryan Briggs, an undergraduate student and Vice President of the Duke Black Student Alliance, believes the policy change may force students into a scenario where “institutionally a roommate holds much more power over them.”
“I love the idea of students from different socioeconomic backgrounds and races coming together because that’s how cultural competency happens. But, as a black person coming from a low socioeconomic background, the potential of living with a rich white male is terrifying,” Briggs tweeted.
“There are so many cultural things that would have to be taught to my roommate to have a comfortable living experience. And I do not have to work for the school to make sure some ignorant student learns how to be a better attribute to the community,” Briggs added.
Current students are concerned this policy may expand to all four years on campus.
“I can understand that some people may be concerned with the inability to choose who you live with as it may make the transition to school more difficult. However, I think that students would benefit from meeting a random sample of the Duke population, as everyone here is very bright and generally personable,” Colin Duffy of the Duke College Republicans told Red Alert Politics.
“I would be more concerned if they began enforcing a policy of random roommates for all years. Inevitably, as people grow and discover their friend groups, they will naturally want to spend more time together. It would be an overreach by Duke, infringing on students’ right to associate, if they tried to socially engineer living situations to make it more ‘equal,’” Duffy said.
The Duke officials do clarify in their letter that issues such as medical conditions and lifestyle preferences, ranging from sleep hours to preferable study locations, will be taken into consideration when designating rooming assignments.
“We believe that you’ll enjoy the opportunity to meet someone you’ve not previously known and will have a great opportunity to explore your roommate’s history, culture, and interests,” Moneta and Nowicki told the incoming students. “Who knows … you may get invited to a part of the world you wouldn’t otherwise get to see.”
Isaiah Denby is a college freshman from Tampa Bay, Fla., studying economics and political science.
