I’m strongly in favor of my daughter trying to get into a wellness dorm/hall wherever she ends up going to college because she doesn’t party and I don’t want her to be the one holding hair/calling EMT. She’s not judgy or unfun, but she would definitely not be happy in this role. My question is about the culture on the wellness floor at Hampshire - who lives there and why? Perhaps there’s something equally not great about this choice of housing that I haven’t thought of. Thanks!
Hampshire College has a Wellness Living and Learning Community (LLC):
https://www.hampshire.edu/housing/living-and-learning-communities
These relatively new first-year communities involve living together as a cohort and taking some common coursework: “This community, located in Merrill House, is one in which approximately 12 students will be given the opportunity to live with one another while learning about wellness topics in which they are interested, including, but not limited to, nutrition, meditation, mental health and stress reduction, sexuality, relationships, and other wellness topics.”
I don’t know anything about the culture that might develop in the Wellness LLC, as this concept was instituted after our two kids graduated from Hampshire.
This might be a good choice for your daughter, but the other option is living on a Substance Free (“Sub-Free”) hallway in one of the dorms: https://www.hampshire.edu/housing/substance-free-housing
“…residents and their guests agree to keep their hall or mod free from substances at all times… …the sub-free housing option provides an added measure of support for people who choose not to smoke, drink, or use other drugs.”
Students on Sub-free hallways are not part of a learning community, but they must register and sign an agreement that they will not bring ‘substances’ onto the floor, or be under the influence of any substances while on the floor.
Our daughter spent her first year on a Sub-free hall, and it proved to be a good experience for her. She made friends that she still has today, 7 years later. They also managed to have plenty of fun. The culture on the floor was great, and they were not viewed as odd individuals by the rest of the students (a fear I had). Most kids on the Sub-free floors were there for good reasons (not being into the ‘substance’ scene). A small number of kids were there because they were either recovering substance abusers, or their parents made this a requirement for attending. As a result, some students ended up violating the agreement they signed, and were asked to move to other housing. Generally though, I would recommend this for anyone who wants to not have to deal with substance use issues.
Thanks for your thoughtful answer, sub-free is the term I should have used. This actually would be a requirement, along with taking classes at the other consortium schools, because I think she will have a better college experience. Fortunately she is in agreement with me on both.