Ohio University - Athena Yearbook (Athens, OH)

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Alu, A typical kitchen of an off-campus student. Two major off-campus disadvan- tages are the burdens of bills and brooms. Payments to CTE are no longer the only numbers depleting the checkbook, now there are costs such as electricity, gas, cable the list goes on. With every passing day, as the garbage piles up in the '61 cans and the bathroom goes un- cleaned, off-campus students find themselves wondering, as senior Bryna Helter does: Hey, wheres the houselceepers? Off-campus living also helps to broaden the students perspective ot' Athens and its citizens. As jane Opposite page: Lakeview apartments is a popular spot for off-campus living. Below: Eugene Delacimo and Ralph Russell live the good life at the College Inn. Dua nc H' F lvfchcr Wetzel says, lt allows you to per- ceive Athens as a community and gives you a chance to get a taste of what your future lifestyle will be like. Lamli L Hmm, ll sa 1 M253 i l'7uJm' It Ilvlrher

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Cut-Housing Life beyond the dorms Remember life as a freshman, stuck in the huge dormitory system waiting to get away from the small rooms, bad food and loud people? For many students, those problems are solved once they reach their ju- nior year when they can leave the dorm system and move off-cam- pus, One thing students enjoy about life off-campus is the end of the cafeteria doldrums. They can con- coct a cuisine at their leisure and clean it up whenever they please. Also, the homey atmosphere is welcomed by the ex-dorm resident, weary of waiting in line for cold showers or walking down the hall to fill the coffee pot with water. Most students agree the distinct advantage of living off-campus is privacy. If an individual wants to get away from the pressures of col- lege life, he can go to his room and shut out the rest of the world, no longer dealing with the neighbor's blaring stereo or football games in the hallway. Life in a house or apartment is not all peace and quiet, however. In the words of off-campus senior Jane Wetzel, You can really have some riotous parties. Without hassles from R.A.s or Security, all an off-campus partier need worry about is threats from the police. Beer and conversation flow freely, and friends feel more comfortable and at home in the open atmo- sphere. Besides the costs for roach mo- tels and mousetraps, students have few complaints about off- campus housing. Careless land- lords who sell high-priced, low quality housing and maintenance problems that go unattended are top on the grievance list. Although some students feel backed in a cor- ner by landlords because of the high demand for housing, they can take their complaints to various student organizations and commu- nity groups.

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Problems of HIGH E ROLLME In a time of economic hardships and rising prices, the cost of tuition for college-bound students is not getting any easier to afford. Thanks to Reaganomics, it's now harder to receive many educational benefits that were once easily accessible. Even though these measures are taking place, the predicted decline of incoming O.U. students has sur- prisingly not appeared, at least for this year. Ohio University's admis- sions quota for the academic year rose in 1981-1982, causing an unex- pected successful year for the school's enrollment. The predicted decline of new freshmen was based on a survey done a couple of years ago which forecasted that between the decade 1980-1990 there would be a 20.596 drop in 18-year-olds, which would cause hard times for colleges. For the time being, however, speculation has been dropped while the admissions department sits with a substantial but modest increase over their target number of 3,000 freshman. According to James Walters, di- rector of admissions, one of the causes for the unexpected boom is the unstable economy. The econo- my is in bad shape, said Walters, Students who graduate from high school are more than likely not go- ing to find a job immediately, so they either have the choice of join- ing the service or going to college. Another reason for the influx, Walters explains, is due to the de- crease in family size. College stu- dents are coming from smaller families, which means they have the finances to send their kids to school, he said. Private institutions, which were on the upswing a while ago, are also indirectly contributing to more students coming to public fa- cilities like O.U. Walters attributes this to their increasing costs and their failure to offer quality educa- tion for the money. We offer stu- dents alternatives like less tuition and more career-oriented pro- grams, where in a private college their curriculum centers around the liberal arts sequence, Walters said. One criticism of student in- creases is the decrease the quality academics. Walters feels, that the quality will increase and the admis- sions hike will turn out to be better in the long run, We will probably receive a bet- ter caliber of students because the admissions increase shows these kids really wanted to come here, he added that, With more strin- gent requirements taking place in each college, it will be tough for a candidate to fill all the prerequi- sites that are required before enter- ing his or her major field. In looking towards the future, Walters feels that if the economy does improve, then the predicted decrease in students will be a reali- ty. Right now, however, he feels the cuts Reagan has taken in education is causing mass paranoia, and feels it is premature. People are forget- ting that Reagan did not get all the cuts he asked for, Walters ex- plained. B.E.O.G. is still intact and students can still receive a loan. The requirements, however are more stringent. Meanwhile, with a good turnout of new students for this present academic year, O.U. waits with un- certainty as to what the future will hold. Kurt Kainer