SHU aspires for a future of 2,500 students and no more

Seton Hill University (SHU) has fewer students than Greensburg’s Hempfield Area High School, and yet, a small campus like SHU was just what some students were looking for.

“We really want our community here,” said Charmaine Strong, the dean of student services. Despite the continual growth of student population at SHU, which does not include the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) students, and our new Performing Arts Center, Strong assures that “there is a limit to how much we can grow.”

By Jessie Krehlik

Contributor

Seton Hill University (SHU) has fewer students than Greensburg’s Hempfield Area High School, and yet, a small campus like SHU was just what some students were looking for.

“We really want our community here,” said Charmaine Strong, the dean of student services. Despite the continual growth of student population at SHU, which does not include the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) students, and our new Performing Arts Center, Strong assures that “there is a limit to how much we can grow.”

She explains that no one at SHU aspires for the school to reach a population of 5,000 students. Ideally, Strong said, our growth would reach close to 2,500 students.
Most commuters have noticed the lack of parking spaces available this year. “If the school continues to grow, parking will be more difficult,” said Grace McQueen, a sophomore, “Commuter parking should be closer to the buildings, because [they] have to allow for extra time to park far away.”

SHU has formed two parking committees, one composed of students, and one of staff and faculty. However, the only immediate change SHU has made is the temporary, grass parking lot near Caritas Christi.

According to Strong, the parking problem is not solved easily. LECOM students will not interfere with either aspect of campus growth problems because not only will those students be living off-campus, but they will also have their own designated parking lot located near St. Mary’s, which is currently under construction.

Although a parking garage might provide mass parking, it is cost-prohibitive. “You don’t want to lose your green space,” said Strong about possible new parking lots. For now, Strong encourages using the lot near Caritas, which holds roughly 125 cars.

Strong is also confident that public transportation will help with the parking situation because the shuttles will make rounds hourly, allowing students who live off-campus to have transportation.

Another cause for concern is our lack of residency space. Both Strong and Robin Anke, director of residence life, said that SHU is exploring new housing development.
To do this, students’ interests must be considered since everyone has their own likes and dislikes about living on-campus.

Freshman Maria Mastromatteo lives in De Chantal with seven other women, but her biggest complaint isn’t the overbooking. “I don’t like that there are no windows in the common area,” she said, “It’s so dark, and it’s like I’m shut-out from the outside world.”

In order to make decisions that will benefit the majority of residents, surveys and focus groups allow Anke, Strong, and other administrators to make educated decisions about student concerns. According to Anke and Strong, SHU creates five-year strategic plans for future development on campus.

“We try to hold true,” said Anke, but sometimes obstacles force SHU to alter their original plans. In order for SHU to build a new dormitory hall, they must have probable cause. The school must wait “until you have consistent overflow,” because building is very expensive.

Although SHU had some overflow this fall, Strong explained that housing always opens up during the spring semester. Students either transfer to other colleges or commute from home in order to save money.

Anke mentioned the possibility of some off-campus, school-sponsored residencies. Although nothing is official yet, Anke said SHU is currently discussing plans with developers who purchased old buildings in downtown and plan to renovate them for possible campus residency.

In order to assess concerns from students and faculty about the current growth, SHU provides focus groups, committees and forums to receive as much positive and negative feedback.

“Student growth for us has been beneficial,” said Anke. Growth “makes us a more diverse population,” she said.