<p>Yale</a> Daily News - Slideshow: Drawings of the new residential colleges</p>
<p>And the accompanying article:
Yale</a> Daily News - Drawings give first look at new colleges</p>
<p>Yeah, I saw these. They look gorgeous…</p>
<p>Hmm… so these are my feelings: </p>
<p>The design of the new colleges is definitely taking cues from some of the older colleges. The low bit of the first drawing looks like the facade of Berkeley’s common room. The tower with four turrets is redolent of the one in Saybrook. The dining hall in the second drawing is remarkably similar to Berkeley’s, with arches on one side, high windows on the other, and a high vaulted ceiling with circular faux-chandeliers hanging down. The common room has a familiar paneling motif, and without a close examination i’d probably believe it was a drawing of Branford or Saybrook’s common rooms. </p>
<p>Clearly they want these colleges to look traditional. They don’t want another morse-stiles situation where students don’t want to be in them bc they’re not castle-ish enough. </p>
<p>But they’re also kind of unexciting. These colleges seem like recycled bits of other colleges. </p>
<p>I think these colleges are ill conceived anyway. No matter how traditional they look, students aren’t going to want to be in them because they are so far away from the center of undergraduate life. The administration made a token showing of interest in student opinion, but ignored the vast disapproval for the new colleges and their new location. It was disrespectful. </p>
<p>I don’t have a problem with derivative colleges per se, but it would be nice if they were more interesting. I like morse and stiles, but if i were to complain it wouldn’t be because they don’t have a traditional gothic or georgian design, it would be because their insides are kind of a dingy yellow, their windows don’t let much light in, and they’re in need of a good renovation. I think the exterior and the courtyards are rather nice. If they were ivy covered like they were intended to be, i think they would be even more beautiful. Their location is inconvenient, but not nearly as inconvenient as the new colleges, which will be a fifteen minute walk away from old campus (where there are many classes), and a twenty minute walk from some places (like the Afam house, la casa, the QRC, clubs along Chapel, etc.). </p>
<p>Once the new colleges are built, they will be permanent. The administration shouldn’t ram through an ill-conceived project that will affect students for centuries. They’re creating an undesirable situation and undermining the excellence of the residential college system. Levin said he hopes that the new colleges will bring the center of campus closer to science hill. I’m a molecular biology major, and i have many of my classes close to these colleges, but i still wouldn’t want to be in them. Despite my many classes on science hill, living there would still be more inconvenient for me. Even science majors take at least half of their classes at places that are very far away from the new colleges (LC, WLH, WHC, A&A, PH, etc.), and most of the on campus parties, restaurants, events, etc. are located in the other colleges, near old campus or on york st. I would rather wake up at 8:30 to get from Berkeley to my orgo class in SCL than get there in five minutes from a new college but have to hike to anything else on campus. </p>
<p>I don’t like that students don’t want to be placed in morse and stiles. I want everyone to want to be in the college that they’re in. The biggest barrier to making these new colleges desirable is the location, and i don’t think they should be built until a new location is found. Unfortunately, i don’t think my concerns will affect the administration very much. However, they will affect generations of yalies.</p>
<p>kwijiborjt,</p>
<p>So what is your suggestion for a viable alternative location, presuming that both the Green and the Cemetary are not available?</p>
<p>I think a lot of undergrads don’t want the additional colleges at all because of concerns about class and section size, the effect on extracurriculars, and access to resources.</p>
<p>It would NEVER have worked, but the best place would have been opposite Sterling, tearing down the School of Music, Elizabethan Club, etc.</p>
<p>Frankly, the drawings made be feel better about the colleges. I agree that the architecture is derivative and a little blah, but Morse and Stiles scared off innovation. I worry a little that the new colleges will look like the Bass library–trying to do an Old Yale look and winding up with nice but antiseptic.</p>