South Carolina State University students face housing issues ahead of fall semester

ORANGEBURG, S.C. (WIS) - South Carolina State University (SCSU) is facing difficult challenges with housing as students arrive and return to campus for the fall semester.

Last week, SCSU welcomed almost 1,200 freshmen in the class of 2027, the largest freshmen class in 18 years. With an increase in enrollment, housing for students is at a premium and some scholars may not have a place to stay.

Trinity Jivers, a sophomore psychology major, says she applied and paid for housing in June, but she missed the June 12th deadline by two days.  “I’ve been commuting back and forth from Columbia every day since yesterday just to make my classes on time and basically, I’ve just been hanging around, nowhere to stay and doing what I can,” said Jivers

The university is also renovating three residential complexes in hopes of bringing 100 beds online for the spring semester. Truth Hall, which is the largest building in Orangeburg on the campus will also be renovated and will bring an additional 400 beds by fall 2024.

Along with Jivers, Sarai Kelly, a sophomore political science major expressed a solution to the housing issues she’s facing.

“I think SCSU should go back to prioritizing upperclassmen by putting us in the assigned dorms that’s for upperclassmen and to go back to putting freshman basically so we can have more housing for the upperclassman,” said Kelly.

SCSU officials are continuing to explore more options for increasing university-affiliated housing which includes the construction of more living-learning communities on the campus.

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