The College plans to convert doubles in Fahey-McLane residential cluster to triples in order to accommodate the increased size of the Class of 2014 by 49 students, according to Acting Dean of the College Sylvia Spears. College officials will be allowed to increase the residence hall's capacity by up to 51 students for the upcoming Fall term, according to documents from the Town of Hanover.
"We anticipate that [the number of students matriculating] is going to be a little bit of a bump from last year, which is why we're prepared to house a higher number of students," Spears said.
Currently 1,143 students are expected to matriculate at the College in the Class of 2014 this fall, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Maria Laskaris said in an interview with The Dartmouth last month. A total of 1,187 students initially accepted the College's offer of admission representing a yield rate of 55 percent of accepted students.
"This was a really exceptional year in terms of the responses to our offers of admission," she said in the interview. "We admitted fewer students than we had in previous years and had a tremendous bump up in yield in regular decision."
College officials had to apply for a "modification of a Special Exception" from the Hanover Zoning Board of Adjustment in order to accommodate the expected increase in first-year students, according to the town documents. The board unanimously approved the request to add beds to Fahey-McLane after reviewing the potential effects on safety and traffic at the College, as well as other factors, the documents said.
The College chose Fahey-McLane to house the additional students because the increase would not significantly reduce the quality of life enjoyed by students living in the residence hall, Spears said. As a relatively new residence hall, Fahey-McLane is also equipped with modern amenities that make it better able to cope with additional residents, Spears said.
Housing first-year students together with other freshmen in residence halls is always a priority, Spears said.
"It's not just as simple as take that few additional students and spread them all over campus, because you want students to be connected to a first-year community," she said.
Only students who have indicated a preference for two or more roommates will be housed in the Fahey-McLane triples, according to Spears.
The increased size of the freshman class will not decrease housing availability for upperclassmen, Spears said.
"No policies have changed that issue hasn't even come up," she said. "It's important for us to have students on campus."
Spears said there are no current plans to permanently increase Dartmouth's future first-year class size to match the number of students in the Class of 2014.
"[It is] something that will require engaging in more discussion over time," Spears said, adding that such considerations will involve input from faculty and other members of the Dartmouth community.
Admissions Office staff have found it increasingly difficult to turn away students whom they consider qualified, Laskaris said.
"Coming up on our 250th anniversary and sort of thinking ahead strategically to the next 10 years or so I would think ideal size is a part of that discussion," she said. "My understanding was that this fall we would begin those discussions."
Staff writers Greg Berger and Emma Fidel contributed to the reporting of this article.
