Create a news story relevant to the KU community and surrounding area. The story involved interviewing newsmakers, shooting and editing video, embedding links, and photography. Media Writing for Audiences

Freshmen students Isabel Zamarripa and Ashley Brownlee enrolled early at the University of Kansas (KU.)  Both chose off-campus housing because of rumors of an extra large freshmen class and the possibility of an on-campus housing crunch in the Fall of 2024.  Despite their planning, both students were impacted by housing changes.

According to a press release from KU, the University experienced record enrollment including nearly 5,300 freshmen students.  This is the highest enrollment in 13 years, according to annual data released in September 2023.  Chancellor Douglas A. Girod welcomes the improved numbers, but students like Zamarripa and Brownlee say the good news has also brought some headaches.

The increased enrollment has led to a housing shortage forcing the University to acquire leases at off-campus locations HERE and Hawker Apartments and to fully take over leases at Naismith Hall.  Both Zamarripa and Brownlee say the changes impacted their housing experiences at Naismith Hall as the leases they originally signed were turned over to KU and Naismith Hall became a dorm instead of having the amenities offered in off-campus housing.  

“I signed at Naismith in like February.  It didn’t really like impact me much except it changed a lot of the dining options.  We were supposed to eat in here, but it messed up and we all have to trek across a field to get any food ever.  It was pretty much the same I feel, but some amenities got changed.  So it’s only a dorm,” said Brownlee.

Zamarripa says some of the amenities in her original lease included a private chef and dining on-site, housekeeping, and access to an outdoor pool.  All of these things were eliminated when KU took over management of the building during the summer of 2023.

“I actually signed in October which for me that was going to be like off-campus living for Naismith and then I was finding my roommate and I found her in June and sometime in July it was announced that KU took over my apartment at Naismith and that we weren’t going to have food as far as like downstairs, private chefs and everything, and we were going to have to walk.  The only effect for me was having some amenities taken away like the pool, the chefs.  We have RAs now and we were going to have housekeeping every weekend,”  said Zamarripa.  

Walking to dining halls was one of Brownlee’s concerns.  She was looking forward to having access to meals in the Naismith Hall building instead she has to walk to the South Dining Hall at Downs or over to Mrs. E’s in Lewis Hall.  She says it’s not convenient, especially in cold weather, but it is what it is.

According to a Staff Report in the University Daily Kansan, the increased enrollment has also led to overcrowded parking lots on campus in addition to the on-campus housing crunch.  

Overall, the University report shows increased enrollment across all classes.  The number of total enrolled students is at almost 30,000.  Other statistics from the data show:

• Out-of-state freshmen enrollment increased 24%.
• In-state freshmen enrollment increased by nearly 14%
• Minority student enrollment is at an all-time high at almost 26% of the University’s population.

Finding solutions hasn’t been easy.  Brownlee says she doesn’t know what other options the University would have had to deal with the freshmen class and on-campus housing.  She says that KU probably did the best they could at the time.  

Zamarripa says she has heard about on-campus housing problems where students had to live in hotel rooms.  She says she doesn’t know anyone at KU who is doing that, but is worried that could have happened.  

KU has a strategic plan on the University website.  This plan is called Jayhawks Rising and is a multi-year process to improve the KU experience.  The three mission-based institutional priorities for Jayhawks Rising are Student Success, Healthy & Vibrant Communities, and Research & Discovery.  The plans on the webpage do not address student housing.

Both Zamarripa and Brownlee are already looking for other off-campus housing options for next school year.  

The University of Kansas Welcome Center,  KU Students Affairs and KU Housing were contacted for this story with no response so far.  

Rewrite the News Story as a Voice Over.

Your name:  Sean Spencer

Slug: KU Housing Crunch

Anchor: Sean Spencer

Time/type: <video file=”KU Housing Crunchr“ time=”0:60”>

VO

Record-breaking enrollment causing big problems for incoming students at the University of Kansas.  A recent KU press release celebrates a historic freshmen class for the Lawrence campus.  Still, more than five thousand freshmen students felt the crunch this summer while trying to secure on-campus housing.  The solution:  The University purchased off-campus leases at three locations, HERE, Hawker Apartments, and Naismith Hall.  KU Freshman Isabel Zamarripa secured her housing in the fall of 2022, only to find out this summer that KU took over all leases at Naismith Hall changing her off-campus living situation into a KU dorm.  She says her original lease offered on-site dining, an outdoor pool, and housekeeping services.  All amenities were removed when KU took over the building.  She says she understands that the University was put in a tough position, but wishes there were other options.  The University of Kansas Welcome Center,  KU Students Affairs and KU Housing were contacted for this story with no response.