HA: More college students expected in Pine Belt - USM Forum -- Message Board

Date: Aug 16, 2004

HA: More college students expected in Pine Belt

Date: Aug 16, 2004

a cursory Hattiesburg American search indicated a reported 9% freshman acceptance increase in April.

Date: Aug 16, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: stinky cheese man
"a cursory Hattiesburg American search indicated a reported 9% freshman acceptance increase in April. "

Thank you, SCM. So, then "acceptances" (a bogus number if there ever was one) are "down" 0.5% from April. Definitely meaningless until the warm bodies actually show up on campus.

Date: Aug 16, 2004

i agree on the .5% difference being something to not worry about (not your terms or position). more importantly than the headcount is the FTE enrollment. some students may enroll but not as full time students because of the tuition increases. unless something changes, FTE enrollment is not worthy of press coverage.

Date: Aug 16, 2004

The following statement from today's HA article puzzles me: "on-campus housing is almost full." Almost full? As I recall, in years of high new freshman enrollmnent the dormitories are over subscribed, and students stay in motels for a week or so. With the overflow from Camp Shelby having occupied the vacant apartments in the Hattiesburg area, it seems to me that the dormitories should have filled up long ago. Can anyone reconcile this discrepancy?

Date: Aug 16, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: Full Moon and Empty Arms

You are thinking of days pre-McCarty Hall.

Date: Aug 16, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: asdf
"You are thinking of days pre-McCarty Hall."

asdf, I am of the understanding that much of Bond Hall was converted to offices because of the construction around the HUB. Has the net available rooms increased?

Date: Aug 16, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: Full Moon and Empty Dorms
"asdf, I am of the understanding that much of Bond Hall was converted to offices because of the construction around the HUB. Has the net available rooms increased?"

Yes, with McCarty Hall in place the number of rooms on campus have increased.

Date: Aug 16, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: Full Moon and Empty Arms
"The following statement from today's HA article puzzles me: "on-campus housing is almost full." Almost full? As I recall, in years of high new freshman enrollmnent the dormitories are over subscribed, and students stay in motels for a week or so. With the overflow from Camp Shelby having occupied the vacant apartments in the Hattiesburg area, it seems to me that the dormitories should have filled up long ago. Can anyone reconcile this discrepancy? "

I have a car with about 6 gallons of gas and it could be determined (given the circumstance) almost full or almost empty depending on its manufacturer and birth date. My car, given these vague descriptions, could be almost full or almost empty depending on the spin you want to give it. What does "almost full" mean beyond merely implying that almost full is almost full of b.s.

Date: Aug 16, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: educator
"What does "almost full" mean beyond merely implying that almost full is almost full of b.s."

educator, your language is far more colorful than my vocabulary will permit, but I agree with your automobile/gasoline analogy. if I had access to the information on dormitory vacancy, and was reporting it to the media, I would be more specific than "almost full." I would say something like "we have only 8 spaces left," or "we have only 122 spaces left." Or whatever the facts at the time of the interview.

Date: Aug 17, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: Full Moon and Empty Dorms
"educator, your language is far more colorful than my vocabulary will permit, but I agree with your automobile/gasoline analogy. if I had access to the information on dormitory vacancy, and was reporting it to the media, I would be more specific than "almost full." I would say something like "we have only 8 spaces left," or "we have only 122 spaces left." Or whatever the facts at the time of the interview."

Sorry, FM&ED, I doubt you'll ever get that straight of an answer re: numbers at USM. They like to play the "funny numbers" game with the media.

Date: Aug 17, 2004

quote:
Originally posted by: truth4usm/AH
"Sorry, FM&ED, I doubt you'll ever get that straight of an answer re: numbers at USM. They like to play the "funny numbers" game with the media."

truth4usm, I thought you'd never notice. In order to interpret the dorm data properly, in addition to the number of dorm spaces currently available it would also be helpful to know the total number of dorm rooms (full + empty) available on campus for students now as compared to before McCarty Hall opened up. Also, what is the size of McCarty Hall and how many rooms in Bond Hall are currently out of service? I am sure those data must be readily available.