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I want to provide some context for MSU's decision to require second-year students to live on campus. This has been in the works for a while and was not because MSU wanted to make more money (although that may have been the immediate trigger).
Some administrators have long been looking for ways to keep students accountable off-campus. They are afraid that when sexual assault and drug-related incidents occur off campus, they don't have a way to discipline and control students.
Administrators think that if students are held on a tighter leash on campus, they will be safer, less likely to be sexually assaulted, and will have closer access/monitoring for mental health issues.
There is some evidence this would work. Grades of on-campus students are higher on average than those off-campus. People are less likely to be sexually assaulted, statistically, with an RA nearby than in a fraternity house.
The problem with this approach is that it treats 18 and 19-year-old students as if they are children. As if they need consistent supervision. As if they don't have the ability to make choices for themselves.
If you know me, you know that I think it's wrong to treat 18-year-olds with tens of thousands of dollars in debt as children. I think there shouldn't be any live-on requirement. Maybe if college were free... but it's not.
I lived on campus for two years. I think that was the right choice for me. But the administration shouldn't be making these decisions for students. And, if you're trying to make behavioral changes in students (GPA, sexual assault, etc), maybe focus on ways that aren't dictatorial
Maybe I'm misremembering... but I do remember reading some statistic that Freshman students were more likely to be sexually assaulted than older students. If that's true, then I'm skeptical on-campus living would be safer. Need to find the stat again
Found it: "However, one-fifth (21.0%) of women who took the survey as freshman had experienced unwanted sexual contact, compared to 36.4% over 3+ years (seniors), suggesting that as others have found, the risk of assault is highest in freshman year." https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5695602/
