Residential Hall Spotlight: The Quad

The Quad

As a first-year, you will be living in one of three residential halls: Sulzberger, Reid, or Brooks. These halls, along with Hewitt Hall, comprise what's known as the Quad.Here's a description of each of the three possibilities.

Sulzberger ("Sulz"): Coveted because of the mere fact that it is the only hallway with air conditioning, which is definitely an asset in those hot summer months.  Although I was lucky enough to be placed in Sulz my first year, the other dorms aren’t too bad temperature wise, just remember to bring a fan!

Sulz/Reid (and how it works!): Sulz, Reid, and Brooks are described as individual halls, but that is technically not the case.  Because of the Sulzberger Tower, a housing option for upperclassmen, the design of The Quad includes a “Sulz” hallway, but also a “Sulz/Reid” hallway that is split up into Sulz (with air conditioning) and Reid (without air conditioning). The Sulz hallway has its own RA, the Sulz/Reid hallway has its own RA, and the Brooks hallway has its own RA.   

 

The room of Alyssa Blackman '17 and Jenna Beers '17 in Sulz/Reid

Brooks: With its own entrance and deep cherry wood doors, Brooks Hall is a great hall to live in.  Although the gate closes at 10 PM and during extreme weather, the secondary entrance gate is a great way to quickly enter The Quad without having to go all the way around to the main gates.  Brooks has its own entrance and elevators, and the Brooks side is also where valuable services and spaces are such as the Brooks Study Lounge, Primary Health Care, Furman Counseling Center, and Well Woman.

My first-year room. (Sorry about the mess!)

Room Size: As Margeaux mentioned in a post earlier, do NOT worry about the roommate selection process; Res Life is generally so spot on.  However, I am also aware that a lot of anxiety stems from how big the room is.  I moved to New York expecting the living-in-a-shoebox scenario that I have often heard about in Manhattan. I can honestly say that is not the case at all.  The rooms are pretty big as far as dorms go, and I have never felt as though I lacked space.    

Sharing a Bathroom: So, yes, you are living with at least one roommate, and, yes, you have to share a bathroom with an entire hallway of people.  Although this may sound like the worst thing in the world right now, there are actually many positives to sharing a bathroom.  There are typically two bathrooms per hall: a gender inclusive one, and a women’s only one.  The set-up is like that of a public bathroom, with various individual stalls and a couple of sinks with mirrors.  There are also showers, and it depends which floor you are on as to whether there is a separate room for just showers or if it is still in the space of the bathroom and sink area.  One thing I really liked about corridor style housing is that you never have to clean your own bathroom (yay)!  Facilities will clean out the bathroom often twice or more a day, which is probably more than you would if you were in charge of cleaning it yourself.  Another thing is that because there are so many bathrooms, showers, and sinks, you probably will never have to wait for one to open up, which is always convenient.

 

The view from my Sulzberger 8th Floor Room

Floor Bonding: One great thing about this corridor style housing set up is that everything is connected.  If you have a friend in Brooks and you live in Sulz, you can just walk through the hallways and get to the room.  At the end of my first year I found that my best Barnard friends were actually the ones that lived on the 8^th floor. We all spent so much time together and it was so easy and convenient to see them.  The corridor style set up is definitely instrumental to hall cohesion among the students who live on your floor, and it’s a really great experience to have all of these friends so easily accessible!

Maria

Sunset at Columbia, as seen from a room in Sulz/Reid

 

Alpha Omicron Pi and My Greek Life Experience at Barnard

The Alpha Omicron Pi sisters on Initiation Day

This semester has been one of exciting changes for me. In addition to becoming a Barnard Student Admissions Representative, I have also had the marvelous opportunity to join a sorority, Alpha Omicron Pi (AOII).

Coming from the south, Greek life was a huge part of the culture, and a vast majority of girls in my high school aspired to (and did!) join a sorority once they got to college.  However, when I came to Barnard, I was very unsure about rushing; I was just getting used to the college environment, and I wanted to take it slow in terms of joining clubs and getting involved in campus.  I was also terrified by the concept of making a lifelong commitment to a group of women. It’s a big step, and I never take anything lightly!

As my first year progressed, however, I became increasingly curious about joining a sorority. My friends who had joined all seemed to be having such a great time. When I talked to different friends about their sororities, they all had nothing but great things to say about not only their respective chapters, but Greek life in general.  Instead of the sense of obligation that I feared would come with being in a sorority, my friends instead seemed to experience love and care for their sisters that did not seem forced at all.  It really seemed like a community, and that thought truly appealed to me.  At the end of my freshman year I decided I couldn’t take it any longer--I just had to rush.  Most of my friends were already in Greek life anyway, and I was so excited to see if it was right for me.



AOII's Relay for Life table

As in so many other ways, Barnard is really the "best of both worlds" when it comes to Greek life. Although I was very excited to join a sorority, many Barnard students simply aren't, and it in no way dominates the social scene.  I never had a problem socially before I joined Greek life; there are so many different things to do and so many types of people, and Greek life is only a portion of the myriad of opportunities available. 

If you decide to do it, formal recruitment, or “rushing,” occurs during second semester.  Formal recruitment is a three-day process where you attend a series of events thrown by each of the sororities.  There are five sororities on Columbia’s campus: Alpha Chi Omega (AXO), Alpha Omicron Pi (AOII), Delta Gamma (DG), Kappa Alpha Theta (Theta), and Sigma Delta Tau (SDT).  Based on a mutual selection process, you are called back to sororities you liked who also believed that you were also a good fit for them.  At the end of the process you may receive a bid, and you can decide to either accept the bid and enter into the pledging process, or deny the bid with the option to rush again the following year.   

If you choose to accept your bid, you become a pledge of the sorority, and eventually become an initiated member (yay!).

Greek life isn’t for everyone, and I wasn't even sure at first if it was right for me. But I can honestly say that after joining Alpha Omicron Pi, my college experience is better than ever. The warmth and love that I have received from my sisters is unprecedented, and I truly feel as if I am part of a community of people who genuinely care about me.  Although I entered into the process with doubts, I am now kicking myself for not joining sooner.  Being in a sorority is so much fun, and it is such a blessing to be part of a group of organizations so committed to both sisterhood and service.  I love philanthropy, I love my sisters, and I love AOII!

Maria

Residential Hall Spotlight: Hewitt Hall

As first years, you will be living on The Quad in a double, triple, or four-person room, and on one of three hallways: Sulzberger, Brooks, or Reid.  However, there is a fourth hallway, Hewitt, which houses upperclassmen.

As you consider which college to choose, you will need to consider not only freshman dorm space, but also what kinds of spaces are available to you as an upperclassman.  With its location on campus, beautiful views, and the fact that it offers single rooms, Hewitt is definitely a residential space to strongly consider.

Students living in Hewitt are again living in a corridor-style space, but this time in single rooms.  They still take the same elevators as the rest of the students living on The Quad, and use the same laundry rooms.  They also use the kitchen and lounge space that is available to everyone living on their floor.

Living in a single after freshman year gives students a unique opportunity to enjoy their own space after having adjusted to the college environment.  As you should while living with a roommate (or roommates!), you have an opportunity to really make the space your own.

Shown below is the Hewitt single of Tiffany Kontoyiannis (BC ’16), who has really taken the opportunity to make her room her own!

 

Stay tuned for more spotlights on the various Barnard residential halls!

 

Maria

The Best of Both Worlds

Name: Maria Victoria Velez

Class: 2016 (Sophomore)

Hometown: Newnan, Georgia

Major: American Studies

Clubs/Organizations: Hispanic Scholarship Tutoring Chair, Columbia University Students for Human Rights Secretary, Alpha Omicron Pi Fraternity, Heights to Heights Mentor

My name is Maria and I am a sophomore at Barnard College.  Coming from a rural town in Georgia, it was expected that I would go to a state school in the south or, if I wanted a private school, a place like Emory or Duke.  However, my aunt, a Barnard alumna, told me that if I applied to Barnard, she would pay for all of my college applications, so (of course) I applied. 

Barnard's First Year Foundations courses
are limited to Barnard students

When I got in I was so excited because I knew how competitive it was, but I was having trouble deciding between Barnard and a Southern school.  When I first walked onto Barnard’s campus as a prospective student, however, I knew that this was the place for me.  I was immediately struck by the fact that Barnard truly offered the best of both worlds: its connection with an Ivy League institution offered a vast amount of additional resources and opportunities, while its small, all-female campus allowed for a cohesive and communal feel. 

I have no doubts that I made the right decision in coming to Barnard, and I am so excited to guide new students into deciding to come here as well!

A few of Columbia from Barnard's campus