Hawthorn Court residents voted Tuesday to approve a community council that would enable its residents to voice concerns to the Department of Residence and possibly be represented in the Government of the Student Body.

Residents voted 96-35 giving the go-ahead to elect one representative per building cluster and two at-large representatives. About 14.6 percent of residents turned out to vote for the Hawthorn Court Community Council.

Earlier this year, Hawthorn Court residents voted down a proposal to join the Inter-Residence Hall Association.

“I was happy to see that it passed with such a good turnout,” said McCurdy, resident of Hawthorn Court. “We received a lot of positive feedback about it.”

Apartment Community Director Mary Beth Golemo said she was pleased the students voted for a form of government.

“As an administrator, I think it’s wonderful to have an organized student voice,” she said. “Students will be able to raise issues and opportunities that others haven’t thought of.”

McCurdy, junior in microbiology, said there were questions from residents during the polling hours, but he said most students sounded excited about the city council-type of government.

“We tried to have somebody there that helped write the constitution to answer any questions they had,” he said.

McCurdy said some residents expressed interest in running for the council while he helped at the polls. Resident Ryan Guard, junior in history, said he has considered seeking office.

“I’ve been thinking about it, but I haven’t made any decisions,” he said.

Guard said the government will help students because it will give them a voice in the student body and to administrative officials, which they didn’t have before.

“This government is limited, small and compact,” he said. “It won’t be intrusive.”

The idea of a city council-type government came from the Department of Residence’s desire to be able to communicate with the Hawthorn Court residents, Guard said. Both McCurdy and Guard were involved with drawing up the constitution.

“There were several members involved,” Guard said. “We talked about different issues and what this government would do for us.”

McCurdy said he and the other members who created the constitution will meet next week to decide how they will handle the election of the representatives and at-large members.

“We’ll plan on how we’ll get the word out,” he said. “Also we’ll decide how they’ll run. Once this meeting is taken care of, we’ll know what to do.”

Golemo said she does not know how the government will impact the future of Hawthorn Court.

“It’s such a new community,” she said. “There are so many things yet to come.”