While Wednesday marked the first day of classes at Clark Atlanta University, nearly 150 students were still waiting Tuesday for answers about their housing accommodations on campus.
Many distraught students and their parents – some from out of state – called the housing issue “unacceptable,” as some said they had paid housing deposits for guaranteed lodging.
Clark Atlanta released a statement explaining that the school requires and provides guaranteed housing on campus for first- and second-year students who are financially enrolled. Upperclassmen who wanted to live on campus had to complete a two-step process – reserve housing with a deposit and complete the financial enrollment process by August 1.
“Communication went to all students beginning in May 2018 about the process and timelines, and the dates were extended several times,” CAU’s statement said. “Those who have not completed the financial enrollment process are being offered temporary housing while they complete the process.”
Even so, CAU students took to Twitter earlier this week to document the scenes of their peers waiting in long lines to meet with housing officials in the student center. Several students told local news outlets that they were financially enrolled and were supposed to have housing by Monday evening.
Other students on the social media site shared that housing shortfalls have occurred at other institutions such as Georgia State University. Last year, Georgia State had to temporarily place roughly 400 students at the Sheraton Atlanta.
Dr. Sara Goldrick-Rab, a professor of Higher Education Policy and Sociology at Temple University, said the housing shortage at Clark Atlanta highlights a larger point that colleges and universities often believe that housing is a “money-maker.”
