Types of Students at UChicago/Student Life

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Chicago ✅
61

@HydeSnark presents very good analysis, and I suspect his assertions ring close to the truth. If, per the numbers he provided, there are, roughly 800-1000 more wealthy (full freight paying) students at Chicago now than before, that’s maybe $40-50M more in tuition revenue a year. That’s a significant chunk of change for a College’s operating costs. My sense is Chicago is serious about getting low income students, but also dead serious about having a foundation of wealthy students to fill the coffers. I suspect it’s the middle class students that are squeezed out the most here.

One point that deserves more mention: Chicago is not great at fundraising, and doesn’t have a huge endowment, making tuition more important to the school. There was another post about this - even when looked at in the most favorable light, Chicago has raised far less money over the past 8-10 years in comparison to Columbia, UPenn, Hopkins, etc.

At bottom, keeping a research U at the top is an incredibly money-hungry enterprise. And that, I think more than anything else, is the Admin’s goal - to keep Chicago competitive in the race. The money to do this, then, has to come from somewhere.

62

Back to this:

Apparently wearing the Canada Goose jacket at the time isn’t enough to keep it from being stolen in Chicago:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/01/25/canada-goose-parkas-are-winters-it-coat-particularly-robbers-chicago/

63

Yep - three of them happened in HP:

https://www.chicagomaroon.com/article/2019/1/18/armed-robbers-target-canada-goose-wearers-hyde-par/

64

A look at UCPD Daily Incident Reports YTD Archive at

https://incidentreports.uchicago.edu/incidentReportArchive.php?startDate=1546322400&endDate=1548309600&offset=0

found a diverse list of events such as Mental Health Transport, Armed Robbery, Drive-by Shooting, Aggravated Battery, Criminal Damage to Vehicle, etc. Canada Goose jacket crime can’t be found.

65

@nrtlax33 - that’s because those robberies happened well off campus.

66

@JBStillFlying I think you are missing nrtlax’s (not so) hidden message which is UChicago campus is not safe and there are mental health issues. We should be thankful to nrtlax for pointing this out.

67

The problem with using the UCPD Incident Reports as ‘data’ is that there isn’t enough information on which to draw conclusions. Using the “Mental Health Transport” as an example, there is no way to know if those were students, faculty or homeless people with no connection to UChicago at all who were transported.

68

@nrtlax33 I read through the incident report link - I wish I hadn’t - I may not sleep another night come September!

In the meantime, temperatures will drop to -40 this weekend…yikes!

69

Call me a cockeyed optimist but I always assume the best intentions for any post.

70

Police blotters make interesting reading. The naked city has a million stories. These incidents cover the gamut and cumulatively build up a picture of the seamier side of student life and non-student life.

The shoot-outs in the apartments on 63rd and 47th - were they drug or domestic-inspired? Doubt they involved students.

Lots of bicycle thefts (or a mere tire in one case), laptops, wallets. Shoplifting on one occasion (one only?). There were also many reports of things found (the good news we tend to overlook).

Then there were the obscure and disturbing cases of the smoldering cigarette found in a waste basket and the individual placing stickers on vehicles. There was someone who “brushed” someone else in Saieh Hall. There was some stalking and harassment going on (student on student, one assumes).

Several calls were made for routine medical problems. I saw only two indicated as for “mental health” (only two in early January?). Pot was discovered and reported a couple of times. A kid at Max P got drunk enough to need medical attention. That shocked me, shocked me profoundly.

There were several instances of individuals removed from campus buildings for trespass - and one as having been previously banned. Any idea what that was about?

Someone shattered two windows in the middle of the night (one at the SSA Building, the other just around the corner on Ellis). Who was that - another alcoholic student, this one on the rampage?

Amidst this miscellany were some serious instances of armed robbery. I counted 8 in all. Interestingly, in three of those cases the assailant was repelled and in one case was captured. Hats off to the intrepid defenders. Several took place very late or even early morning, and they were generally at the outer edges of student-occupied Hyde Park. Not all necessarily involved students, though several clearly did (including the Canada Goose napper).

It surprised me to note that UCPD patrols an area that extends from 37th to 63rd. That stretch above 47th would not hold many students or student hang-outs, would it?

What conclusions are you drawing from this data, @nrtlax33 ? You must have a reason for showing it to us.

71

@marlowe1 “There was someone who “brushed” someone else in Saieh Hall. There was some stalking and harassment going on (student on student, one assumes).” I read that!! A great use of police time!

72

Saieh Hall isn’t safe! Bus. econ. majors should all beware!

73

I should really stop reading all of these posts. I have warned my daughter that she’s not allowed to leave campus ever (I’m only semi kidding). I asked a Chicago friend what kind of parka/jacket to get my California girl, and she told me definitely not a Canada Goose. What else does she need to avoid having or wearing?..

74

I noticed that the Canada Goose badge looks a lot like my kid’s Taekwondo patch - I offered to sew that on the sleeve of her oh-so-dorky LL Bean coat so she’d look like the cool kids. Highly doubt she’d get mugged for a knock-off.

In other news, the cold and snow last night nearly prevented her from getting back from work in time for her house activity. Traffic was awful. Such are the charms of big-city life in the midwest - in January. With Feb. just around the corner.

75

@momo2x2018 , the natural tendency of any organization is to justify its existence. Perhaps all these things require investigation, but do they all merit being reported? Yet I have to say that I sort of enjoyed reading them in their unwinnowed unexpurgated totality. Life is full of highs, lows and a lot of in-between stuff. We get a lot of the first sort of thing in the official pronouncements about the prize-winners and accomplishments of the University and its students. We also hear about the odd tragic or truly scary event involving a student. I sort of like these little vignettes of the middling kind of upsetting and annoying experience at a great university. The imagination is really given room to rove in this “brushing” incident. I reckon the police recorded it as another one for the blotter and then moved on.

76

@PepperJo “I asked a Chicago friend what kind of parka/jacket to get my California girl, and she told me definitely not a Canada Goose.” I was thinking of having my S’s comforter, refashioned into a coat, however, I fear it may not be warm enough, LOL!

77

“It surprised me to note that UCPD patrols an area that extends from 37th to 63rd. That stretch above 47th would not hold many students or student hang-outs, would it?”

Good question. Certainly there are grad students in Kenwood but it’s my impression that there are students up the lake front from Woodlawn to South Loop. Bronzeville and perhaps even Oakland might have UChicago as well as IIT students (there’s a school of optometry tucked in there somewhere as well). It’s possible that the IIT force picks up the patrols north of 37th.

78

I saw a whole bunch of students leaving Valois yesterday morning. Presumably they just had their breakfast. It was cold (around 2 degree) and I could tell the boys were feeling the chill and a few of them were shaking. Two to three of them were wearing Canadian Goose. But they did not have their coats zipped up. They were exposing their bodies to the bitter cold wind with nothing but an undershirt or a sweat shirt.

The best winter parka in the world will not keep you warm if you leave your jacket unzipped. SMH.

79

Going back to the original topic but staying on the subject of UCPD patrol area, here is the official UCPD patrol map.

https://d3qi0qp55mx5f5.■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/safety-security/uploads/files/Extended_Patrol_Map.pdf

You can see as patrol zone goes north, the area narrows significantly to the point that at 37th Street the patrol zone only covers a couple of blocks.

UGo Day Shuttle does not go north of 53rd Street. UGo Night Shuttle does go north all the way to 48th Street.

For most people at CC, whose interest is mainly confined to undergrad, living north of 48th is likely not a convenient option unless you have a car and are willing to go through the trouble of finding a parking space on campus during school hours. It would be a major hassle to a College student life to deal with the commute everyday.

Now if you are a grad student, post doc or even junior faculty member, that is another story. There are a lot of real estate developments in north Kenwood and Oakland along the lake front. What used to be urban wasteland thirty years ago has been slowly rejuvenated with plenty of new townhouses, townhomes and condo buildings. Hyde Park real estate price has gone up significantly in the last 5 years. Kenwood is still full of mulit-million dollar mansions. I can see an assistant professor deciding to buy a townhome at North Kenwood and Oakland due to the cost advantage.

80

She just posted this video a few hours ago and the second part of the video is a pretty good snapshot of student life. It was in Mandarin Chinese but with English subtitle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldgzpVVwH2k

The only veggies served at Baker are broccoli???