Southern Maine Community College (SMCC) declared this July that housing fees will decrease for the students after analyzing incurred damages in residential properties.
Tiffanie Bentley, Student Life’s Dean, confirms this by lowering it from two hundred fifty United States dollar ($250) to one hundred ($100).
“We found that most students don’t incur any damages.”
“For those who do, the damage is usually under $100.”
She said that by lowering fees, the students will have more options in applying for housing.
“One of our goals is and always has been to make access to the college as barrier-free as possible.”
The public community college operates as a two-year institution. The allotted full tuition for Maine locals is about two thousand eight hundred United States dollars ($2,800) as Bentley has said:
“Because of our low tuition, we enroll a disproportionate number of students who face challenges affecting the greater Portland area, such as housing and food insecurity.”
Phil Saucier, the Residents Life, and Student Involvement Director, said that when students have difficulties looking for a place to stay, “it’s hard to focus on learning.”
“If students have access to housing, then they have security, as well as access to resources such as their residential assistant.”
A study conducted by Complete College America has revealed that students who complete thirty (30) credits per year are more likely to finish with credentials than with students who have fewer credits.
However, according to Bentley, students “who work on top of taking classes, taking 15 credits a semester may not be realistic.”
SMCC is currently considering to offer free housing for students who are taking at least six (6) credits during the summer term. As Bentley has said:
“Currently, we’re discussing it at the executive level.”
“It could be in place as early as summer 2020.”
It was added that the cost of summer housing is around two thousand dollars ($2,000). By lowering the housing fees, Bentley mentioned that this would permit students “to graduate faster.”
“For those students who can’t take 15 credits a semester, this would allow them to graduate faster, and with less debt.”
“For those who can take 15, this would allow them to get ahead.”
