Student Council passed three resolutions during Tuesday’s general body meeting, which include moving the deadline for on-Grounds housing applications to an earlier date in the academic year, approving five new Contracted Independent Organizations and installing more water fountains in first-year dorms. Student Council also announced that Student Health and Wellness will be providing free STI testing for University students for the rest of the spring semester. The meeting was held via Zoom due to a winter storm which paused University operations Tuesday and Wednesday.
Student Council unanimously passed a resolution to create an earlier application start time and deadline for the on-Grounds housing selection process for returning undergraduates. First-year College Rep. Manuela Kodwo sponsored the resolution, stating that on-Grounds housing follows a much later schedule than the average off-Grounds lease, leaving students to scramble for accommodations when on-Grounds housing fills to capacity. According to Kodwo, this resolution does not yet have a specific date for the new application, but future updates will come as Student Council works with Housing and Residence Life on the issue.
“While [U.Va. does] say that housing isn’t guaranteed beyond our first years, I don’t think that was advertised well, which leaves a lot of people confused about where they’re going to live,” Kodwo said. “...the Student Affairs website says most people start searching for [off Grounds] leases in September…whereas right now, the on-Grounds housing process is [set] for students to apply in December [and] select their housing in mid-January.”
Kodwo noted that while this problem has existed in years past, she said she feels it culminated this year as on-Grounds housing options for returning undergraduates reached capacity for the 2025-2026 school year, leaving many students to search for off-Grounds options. The University housing website states that students can join a waitlist for on-Grounds housing, but roommate groups will not be considered.
Second-year College Rep. Brian Ng spoke in support of this resolution, stating it was “crazy” that all on-Grounds housing was filled for the first time ever, and said that housing should be a right for students. Ng claimed that the University is unfairly attempting to push third and fourth years out of on-Grounds housing as part of its 2030 plan wherein all second-years will be required to live on-Grounds.
“People pay tuition to come here, and in order to enroll, they have to be housed,” Ng said. “...I’ve heard information that per the 2030 plan, once they require second-years to live on-Grounds, [the University plans] on pushing third and fourth years out, which I don’t think is the best resolution. The only acceptable resolution, to me, is either admit less people or build more housing.”
The Cavalier Daily could not independently verify Ng’s claims that the University has a plan to push out third- and fourth-year students. Per HRL’s website, upperclassmen who wish to remain in the same on-Grounds housing area during the next academic year may select their housing in early November, before first-year students select on-Grounds housing in January.
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, Jada Benefield, chief of cabinet and third-year College student, announced free STI testing for University students for the rest of the semester. Benefield stated that Student Council typically only allocates enough money for free STI testing through SHW for about a week, and it is rare for this resource to be free for the entire semester. Benefield said the extended testing is in large part due to long standing connections Student Council has made with SHW.
“For this to be free for the rest of the semester is really amazing,” Benefield said. “This is not just Student Council work — we have created a great relationship with Student Health and Wellness.”
Kodwo also sponsored a bill to add more water fountains in first-year dorms, stating that both herself and other students feel the current fountains are too few in number and do not filter properly — there have been a mix of complaints between some fountains producing water with an off-taste and others that display a red indicator light. According to Kodwo, this is especially an issue in Alderman Road dorms which only have one fountain on the bottom floor, despite the buildings being multiple stories tall.
“A lot of people have come up to me complaining about water fountains and how they’re not very reliable in first-year dorms,” Kodwo said. “Sometimes these water fountains can go on for a couple weeks without being filtered.”
While the proposal did not specify the number of new fountains that will be installed in each dorm, Kodwo again said this bill will allow future work with HRL to figure out specifics, and the resolution passed with all 20 representatives in support.
The Airbus schedule for spring break from March 8-16 was also released Tuesday. Airbus is a Student Council resource that provides a low-cost coach bus service between Charlottesville, the Washington Dulles Airport and the Richmond International Airport.
The bus runs specifically around University breaks to provide out-of-state students with accessible transportation to the nearest airports. Students can purchase tickets through the Student Council website for $25 per ride and are each allowed one carry-on item and one piece of luggage. There are four ticket options this spring break, with two trips to Dulles March 7 and 8, and two trips back to the University March 15 and 16.
Student Council also approved five new CIOs on-Grounds, including Darden Oak Society and Graduate Physics Society. According to Andreas Masiakos, chair of the representative body and fourth-year College student, these five new organizations will make unique additions to the University among the 800 organizations already established on Grounds. Masiakos said it is important to have CIOs specifically focused on graduate students, such as the Darden Oak Society which grants business students experience in the whiskey industry.
“[A lot] of our clubs are focused on undergraduate students, so getting a unique perspective from North Grounds is always a welcoming feeling, and I’m glad we were able to get them through the process,” Masiakos said.
Student Council will reconvene for a general body meeting next Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
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