Residence hall officials anticipate adding academic clusters to the Hawthorn Court apartment-style facilities next fall.

“Although we aren’t committed to anything yet, these clusters would allow students to continue to have the advantages of learning communities that were established as underclassmen,” said ISU Academic Coordinator Lee Furbeck. “And it would make it easier for students to check with each other and discuss things of common interest.”

Currently the residence halls are gathering feedback about the interests of various groups and are beginning to receive some positive responses from some organizations, such as Women in Science and Engineering and the Honors Program, Furbeck said.

These clusters will be an element of the 11 new buildings that are anticipated to be completed before next fall, she said.

Therefore, the residence hall staff said they are “not asking students to move out or move around, because there will be plenty of spaces,” she said. With these buildings, there will be 1,100 new openings.

Furbeck said these clusters will most likely be more casual than the current set-up in the dorms.

The clusters will not have an adviser and will be nonexclusive, she said.

“If you’re not in the College of Engineering and you want to be on an engineering floor, you still will be able to live there,” she said.

Residence hall officials said they have not decided how students will register for these specific floors or the exact stipulations.

“Right now we’re just getting the feelers out and are having the learning community coordinators begin talking to the students,” she said.

The Department of Residence is very supportive of establishing these academic clusters in Hawthorn Court, said Virginia Arthur, associate director of residence.

“A community such as this will be a great place to extend learning,” she said. “Even though they are in apartments, they still will be able to keep a connection.”

However, Pam Baker, sophomore in agricultural business, said these specialty clusters will defeat the purpose of the housing at Hawthorn Court for the residents.

“This will make it almost like a dorm,” said Baker, resident of 6335 Hawthorn Court. “It will segregate people, and it doesn’t coincide will the idea of apartment-style living.”