Students Get Involved Again As Pandemic Dissipates

Marist Students gathered in room in Gartland Commons. Photo courtesy of Marist College

With the spring semester steadily drawing to a close, students must begin to think about where they will live next school year. Naturally, priority points, the metric that Marist College uses to determine the order in which students will get to select their on-campus housing, are at the forefront of discussions about housing. 

Priority points are given based on GPA, behavior and club participation. Now, on the other side of the pandemic, Marist students have been able to earn points with more ease as COVID-19 restrictions are relaxed, and campus involvement returns.

As the threat of the pandemic continues to dissipate into the spring semester, there have been many more opportunities for students to participate in activities on campus. By participating in these activities, students can get priority points. The more priority points a student has, the better the chance is that they get their preferred housing for the upcoming academic year. This year, clubs have returned, and students have come in droves to participate.

“This year, there have just been more opportunities in-person around campus,” said Anthony Citera ’24. “I feel like last year, it was really limited, but this year I feel like I see opportunities to get involved everywhere.”

This year, Citera, who is a part of the men’s cross country and track teams, has joined the Athletic Affairs Board for Student Government and Delta Epsilon Mu, a pre-health fraternity.

“I would have joined the fraternity last year, but it just was not as appealing doing everything on Zoom. Now that I can be a part of these in person, it was really a no-brainer for me to join,” said Citera.

Students all across campus have come back to the club scene. Marist understood that last year, there were fewer opportunities for students. This is why the maximum priority points this year are higher than last year. Not only are there more opportunities to get involved, but the opportunities themselves are more appealing.

Clubs have provided a significant boost to on-campus involvement, in addition, is the return of RA-hosted activities and events. Doors and hallways across campus are covered with posters promoting mixer events hosted by RAs, where students are provided the chance to participate in activities while also meeting other people. These events provide students with more opportunities to get priority points as well.

“These RA events that pop up from time to time are helpful, and if you go to a certain amount, you can get a priority point,” said Jack Parsons ’24.

While there are more opportunities to earn campus involvement points this year, some have said it is more difficult to get points from the GPA standard. The return of fully in-person classes could contribute to this feeling.

“It is definitely harder to get points for GPA this year,” said Julianna Engel ’24. “Last year, you had access to your notes and textbooks all the time, so it was easier to get a good grade because you had most of the information right in front of you.”

According to Upper West Cedar Resident Director Kimberly Marsden, this year’s official priority point average will not be known until after housing selection has been completed. It will be interesting to see if the average this year is similar to the numbers seen in pre-pandemic years.

As we get closer to housing selection, priority points will be in the back of the minds of the students who will be returning to campus living next year. Those who were able to maintain high GPAs while also being involved on campus will likely have no problem getting their preferred housing, while those who did not could see themselves in less desirable living arrangements come fall.