Few college students are able to tell this kind of story. Kameryn Westling is one of the first Goucher students to call 903 Dulaney Valley Road "home." She is living in the Sheraton Baltimore North hotel. About a month before she was due to report to campus, Kameryn started getting nervous. She had not yet received her room assignment. What should she bring? What was her roommate going to be like? How was she supposed to get ready for a new college? She called the Office of Community Living to find out why she had not yet received any information about where she would be living. The response startled her; she was told that she would be spending the year in a hotel. Kameryn remembers her initial thought after she was told that: "Cool!" Not everything is as she anticipated, though. Kameryn transferred here from George Mason University, which is about as different from Goucher as it gets. While Goucher is looking to grow up to about 1,500 students, over 17,000 students attend George Mason. They are known for diversity; Goucher is known for its "bubble." And that bubble is one of the first things that Kameryn noticed. In some ways she likes the bubble - "There is a really strong sense of community here" - but in other ways she dislikes it - "Sometimes it's really hard to be a part of the campus." During the week, Kameryn leaves her hotel room in the morning and doesn't return there until late at night. She keeps herself busy here, spending the little extra time she has in between her 8 classes doing work in the library or hanging out with her friends. "I miss not being able to just go hang out in my room for an hour in between classes. Sometimes I just want to take a nap in the middle of the day, but going all the way back over to the Sheraton really isn't an option," she says. She eats all three meals on campus, including the lunch that we shared in Heubeck recently. As she dug into her spinach and roasted red pepper turkey loaf, she talked about the difficulties that go with having to be on campus for every meal. It is not like she can cook anything in her room, either. While most residence halls have a kitchen available for students to cook their own meals, all she has available to her at the Sheraton is a microwave in her room. She is not the typical Goucher student. She needs a car to get to class, especially as the weather turns colder. The added costs associated with living in the Sheraton go beyond the gas it takes to shuffle back and forth between the hotel and campus. She had to pay the $50 for a parking permit so that she can legally park on campus while she is in class. She is also paying the room rate for a suite, even though she anticipates paying the lesser room rate for a double. While the students living on-campus are given free laundry, students living in the Sheraton have to pay for it and they are not being reimbursed, she says. "That's extra money that I wouldn't have to spend if I were living here," she explains. Vice President and Dean of Students Dr. Gail Edmonds realizes the inconvenience and is trying to get all of the Sheraton students on campus as fast as possible. About midway through the lunch, she stops herself and says, "I keep telling you all the stuff I don't like, but I am forgetting to tell you how much I love it here!" She really does love the Goucher campus. "Everyone here is so friendly," she says. "People actually hold doors for you. At George Mason, they would let the door slam right in your face!" And she loves the amenities at the Sheraton, too. Available to the students living there are a hot tub, a swimming pool, and a small gym. "And they really don't care if I invite some friends over to use the hot tub," she says with a smile on her face. The amenities in the room, though, are not as nice as one would expect. Instead of the comfortable furniture that Sheraton guests normally enjoy, Goucher students living there have normal dorm room furniture. (The only exception to this is the Community Assistant living at the Sheraton, Mat Heggem.) The entire hotel has wireless internet, which she says is nice. The problem, though, is that she thinks the network is not secure. "One night I was checking my Goucher email and a porn website popped up! I closed it, and ran a test for spyware on my computer and it found 101 of them." She remembers, "I called the [Sheraton technical support] and they ended up hanging up on me. Then, I couldn't get in touch with anyone from the Goucher HelpDesk…. That kind of problem wouldn't happen if I were living here." Amidst all of the unexpected problems and extra costs, Kameryn is having a great time. She says that, among other things, she looks forward to the voucher she will receive when she decides to study abroad. She plans to return next year, with one caveat: "As long as I get a room on campus." At the end of the day, she just wants to be a part of the bubble.
The reality of having a hotel dorm room
Published: Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Updated: Monday, August 9, 2010 20:08
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