Viterbo University first-year students are all required to live in on-campus housing, more specifically, the dorms. The two residence halls to choose from are Marian and Bonaventure Hall. In these, each student typically has one roommate (in some special cases students may live alone or with more than one). This means most students must become comfortable living with another individual and sharing things they may not be used to, like bathrooms. All this can be easily resolved, but living in the dorms in the winter can raise many questions and concerns.
Ben Biskupski is a first-year student and lives in Bonaventure Hall. When asked about dorm life in the winter, he said, “You know dorm life is fun. I can live with all of my friends and see them at any time. The only thing about this during wintertime is that it is considered ‘flu season,’ and living closely with one another makes us more likely to get sick. However, I love to sleep with the window open, so during the winter being able to cool off my dorm room is a major benefit.”
Riley Rosenkranz is also a first-year student and had similar but surprisingly different answers. Rosenkranz stated, “Me and my friends were able to plan things like secret Santa during wintertime. It was good vibes with everyone in the same room. I just wish I was able to control the temperature better. If I leave my window open, it gets too cold in my room, but if I leave it closed, the heat makes it too hot, so it makes it tough to find the right temperature.”
Nevertheless, Wisconsin has been fortunate enough to have a very mild winter so far, but it provides both pros and cons to the first-years living in the dorms.
