by Nick Dill, Student Reporter
Living in the dorms during a pandemic is different. Having to wear masks anytime residents are in the dorms is the new reality.
Matt Adair, director of housing at Northwestern, said resident assistants are responsible for helping enforce all of the rules from the housing handbook. He said this includes things such as visitation and proper etiquette in the dorms. This year, they also have to help enforce mask wearing, he said.
Adair said these policies are put in place “to keep the students safe and healthy and in a clean environment and then to help coordinate communal living.”
He added that RAs are “making sure that we’re respectful of others, and we’re in the right frame of mind to be able to function in a tight space in group living.”
‘IT’S A LITTLE AWKWARD’
Peyton McDonald, a junior RA in Ament Hall, feels that students’ college experiences are being limited because of the new rules.
“Students and their freedom are limited due to rules such as no off-campus guests and no more than two people in a room,” McDonald said. “I’m not a fan of enforcing the rules, but I understand the reasoning behind it.”
Dawson Maxwell, a junior RA in Coronado Hall, said it’s part of his job. He said he has more work to do because of the new rules, but he said he doesn’t mind doing the extra work.
“It’s a little awkward having to enforce the rules with my friends,” Maxwell said. “We enforce the rules so everyone is safe and happy in the dorms.”
Carys Delaplane, a junior RA in South Hall, said she doesn’t really mind enforcing the new rules, either.
“As RAs, we already enforce all of the other rules, but it gets kind of annoying having to enforce the same mask rule over and over again, especially this far into the school year,” Delaplane said. “The new rules just add a couple of more things for us to look for.”
She said the biggest challenge is that residents still do not follow the rules, specifically the university’s mask mandate.
“It’s annoying because we’re seven weeks into the semester, and they should know better by now,” Delaplane said. “It’s also challenging to enforce the new rules because not every resident respects them and understands that we have them in place to keep the residents safe, so some residents like to have an attitude about it.”
Delaplane said it’s important for RAs to enforce these rules because, without them, the dorms would not be as safe as they are now.
“When the RAs enforce the rules in the dorms, we are doing it to keep our residents safe by keeping the COVID numbers down so that we can remain on campus,” she said.
Kenlee Netherton, a senior RA in Fryer Hall, believes that enforcing these rules helps slow the spread of the virus in the dorms.
“It is important to enforce these rules for funding purposes,” Netherton said. “This is something that a lot of students do not understand, but our funding comes from students who are on campus and taking classes.”
Adair said there are some main rules to follow to keep everyone healthy in the dorms.
“Be respectful of others, and keep your space clean,” Adair said. “Those two things help keep the dorms running smooth and efficient.”