Schools change to bigger beds to keep kids on campus

By Meghan Patrick, contributing writer
Posted on October 4, 2007

Students covered in bumps and bruises from falling off their dorm beds in the middle of the night are in for a pleasant surprise.

Twin mattresses, the standard size bed for college students living on campus, are now being replaced by full mattresses at some universities, reported The Washington Post. In order to compete with the popularity of off-campus housing and appeal to students seeking the comfort of home, colleges such as American University and UNC Greensboro have initiated this trend.

Moving towards larger beds was a response to complaints from students saying that the twin beds were too small and childish, The Post said. Unlike AU, which gave 115 upperclassmen new double beds this fall, the Office of Residence Life at JMU does not see this adaptation as relevant to the satisfaction or comfort of its current students.

“The issue of larger mattresses has not been shared as an amenity that JMU residential students feel strongly about,” Maggie Burkhart Evans, director of Residence Life at JMU, said. “[ORL] gathers feedback in multiple ways, through semi-annual satisfaction surveys, information from RAs and Hall Directors and through any unsolicited information students choose to share.”

Senior Courtney Jones lived on campus her first two years at JMU.

“I thought that the mattresses were great,” she said of the extra-long twin beds that are found in every campus room.  “I never heard anyone say anything negative about the comfort. I don’t think it is the idea of bigger beds that make people want to move off campus. The desire is for freedom, new responsibilities and personal space that one can’t have in a dorm room or with an RA.”

Senior Dan Alvarado understands the appeal of a bigger bed but does not feel it is a necessity for on-campus college students.

“I agree with the idea that twin beds are childish,” he said. “For those of us who have big beds back at homes, I can empathize with the frustration that students might feel as they are reduced to a smaller bed. [Twin beds] are what you have when you are at summer camp or when you are 13-years-old. It’s not necessary, but I think that all of us love the idea of having a queen size bed, with more space to sleep or to cuddle with that special someone.”

Trying to win students over to live on campus isn’t a relevant topic to JMU, Alvarado said.

“The real issue is quite the opposite,” he said.  “A lot of students wish that there was more on-campus housing for upper-classmen, as people are generally quite satisfied with the dorms’ quality.”

Evans agreed.

“[Competition between ORL and off-campus housing] is not a concern for JMU,” she said.  “The apartment complexes do a nice job of providing an independent living experience that might better suit the needs of juniors and seniors. We don’t see any need to enter into direct competition with the complexes by offering housing options that are already well established within our community.”