Returning to campus this year felt like coming home after a long, summer family vacation. Being an upperclassman, I returned to a sea of familiar faces, friends to help me move in and a feeling of simply belonging. I did not experience any anxiety at all about roommates or classes or making friends. More than anything, it just felt good to be back.
I moved into Stuy and was overall extremely pleased with my rooming situation. My three roommates are awesome and I could not be happier with the layout of my room, the abundance of drawer space and the vast amount of light my room draws from our large window.
Having the sink in my room is a little strange at times, such as when I’m brushing my teeth nearly 5 feet away from my sleeping roommate, but I think it is something I could get used to without too much hassle. After sweating out my first few nights in Hayes last year, having air conditioning has basically changed my life.
My one and only complaint is probably very predictable: Stuy renovations are still not complete. The parking lot is chaos and trying to maneuver our minivan into a nonexistent parking spot on move-in day was difficult even for a native New Yorker like my dad. There are still construction workers visible all around the building, a think layer of construction dust encases everything in the proximity and the coffee shop is incomplete.
I do not know if my expectations were unreasonable, but I expected the building to be finished when I was ready to move in. To be fair, I do not know much about renovation processes, so for all I know this project has been done quickly, but it still would have been nice to come back to a fully renovated and completed dorm.
Despite this complaint, I am enjoying Stuy immensely and will be fully in love with it once all of the construction work is finished. The other renovations on campus have been nice surprises to return to as well. The new computer lab in Welch is so much more spacious and all of the painting has made the building much more aesthetically pleasing.
I was also excited about the new desktop computers in Beeghly and the new laptops that can be checked out. To my surprise, I have also come to enjoy the fountain. I have loved sitting outside near it and walking by it lit up at night and thought adding bubbles to it was a perfect idea for Day on the Jay.
Overall, I’m really looking forward to a great year. As far as the paper, my staff and I are happy to be delivering news to the campus once again and we will strive to always abide by the high standards we set for ourselves in the spring and to remain the campus community’s main source of news.
We will delve deep into the issues most affecting our campus and quickly and accurately relate the news to you, our sole reason for publishing The Transcript: the reader. Here’s to a great year and an informed campus.
Marissa Alfano
Editor-in-Chief