2008 Woodie Awards
Living on-campus should not resemble braving the wilderness
Emin Okutan
Issue date: 11/29/07 Section: Soap Box
A student comes from a foreign country on an exchange program to visit the University of Maine. Despite hearing of its famous weather and a few other negative aspects, she sticks to her decision. She arrives and gets to stay in Estabrooke Hall. She has to pay a good of amount of money for the costs of a meal plan and lodging. Whereas, on the other hand, if she had chosen the Erasmus program, she would have paid 300 Euros for her general expenses and would have discounts and her educational expenses.
A few months pass; she expresses her enjoyment of the campus and the environment. The temperature starts dropping; she wonders when her heat will start working. A few weeks pass. She starts to feel there is a problem with the heat. Patiently she waits for her room to heat up. It never happens. She visits Property Management. They say they will take care of it. They never do. One night, when she has a few exams to work on, she cannot stay in the room because of the cold. She also starts getting bites from insects.
The building is old and the cleaning service is inconsistent. She has to flee her room and stay at her friend's house while constantly asking Property Management to check her room for infestation. They arrive and refuse to act because they want to see proof of the bug - so, just to let you know, if you happen to get bitten, you'll have to catch the sinister creature in order for Property Management to take action. They claim the bug must have travelled on "a plane." They also don't do anything about the heating situation. She solves it with an electric blanket. She spends a miserable week with little sleep and a hard push for exams.
Note that the girl in the case tried to "survive" in her own dorm, which she had to pay $3,000 to stay in. I checked the Maine Attorney General's Web site for landlord responsibilities. It reads "Residence Must Be Fit To Live In. The landlord promises that the residence: (1) complies with applicable housing codes; (2) is fit to live in; and (3) is not dangerous to the life, health or safety of the occupants." Property Management clearly violated the conditional responsibilities they had to fulfill. If she had known her rights and not feared having to look for another location to stay, she could have easily sued Property Management for their inaction and ignorance to the living conditions in Estabrooke Hall.
There is a certain hypocrisy when students are banned from cooking equipment, including a microwave, "for their own safety" when they have to fight for survival when it comes to heating, dorm conditions and environmental factors.
I would like to thank Property Management for influencing an exchange student's experience at UMaine. When she returns to her country and is asked about the United States and Maine, instead of all the possible positives that could have been delivered, she will speak of her survival in the dorms, the inaction of the system and show the bug bites she has on her arms. For any incoming international students, I feel obligated to advise them to avoid Estabrooke and seek alternative options unless there is a valid explanation of where all the dorm fees are spent.
Emin Okutan is a senior business major and President of the International Student Association.
A few months pass; she expresses her enjoyment of the campus and the environment. The temperature starts dropping; she wonders when her heat will start working. A few weeks pass. She starts to feel there is a problem with the heat. Patiently she waits for her room to heat up. It never happens. She visits Property Management. They say they will take care of it. They never do. One night, when she has a few exams to work on, she cannot stay in the room because of the cold. She also starts getting bites from insects.
The building is old and the cleaning service is inconsistent. She has to flee her room and stay at her friend's house while constantly asking Property Management to check her room for infestation. They arrive and refuse to act because they want to see proof of the bug - so, just to let you know, if you happen to get bitten, you'll have to catch the sinister creature in order for Property Management to take action. They claim the bug must have travelled on "a plane." They also don't do anything about the heating situation. She solves it with an electric blanket. She spends a miserable week with little sleep and a hard push for exams.
Note that the girl in the case tried to "survive" in her own dorm, which she had to pay $3,000 to stay in. I checked the Maine Attorney General's Web site for landlord responsibilities. It reads "Residence Must Be Fit To Live In. The landlord promises that the residence: (1) complies with applicable housing codes; (2) is fit to live in; and (3) is not dangerous to the life, health or safety of the occupants." Property Management clearly violated the conditional responsibilities they had to fulfill. If she had known her rights and not feared having to look for another location to stay, she could have easily sued Property Management for their inaction and ignorance to the living conditions in Estabrooke Hall.
There is a certain hypocrisy when students are banned from cooking equipment, including a microwave, "for their own safety" when they have to fight for survival when it comes to heating, dorm conditions and environmental factors.
I would like to thank Property Management for influencing an exchange student's experience at UMaine. When she returns to her country and is asked about the United States and Maine, instead of all the possible positives that could have been delivered, she will speak of her survival in the dorms, the inaction of the system and show the bug bites she has on her arms. For any incoming international students, I feel obligated to advise them to avoid Estabrooke and seek alternative options unless there is a valid explanation of where all the dorm fees are spent.
Emin Okutan is a senior business major and President of the International Student Association.
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