Former UArts students find new home in dedicated campus dorms at Temple University
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The start of a new school year is often exciting, but for a group of former University of the Arts students, this fall marks the beginning of a new chapter under unexpected circumstances.
When the Philadelphia art school abruptly closed in June, hundreds of students were left without a clear path forward. Temple University is trying to ease the transition for the UArts students who chose to make the North Philadelphia campus their new home by creating a dedicated residential community for those who live on campus.
Ryan Young, Temple's director of residential life, said the university allocated some floors in the Johnson and Hardwick residence halls specifically for former UArts students who chose to stay in a cohort with peers from their former school. Of the 321 former UArts students now enrolled at Temple, 75 chose to live on campus. Fifty of those students chose to live in the cohort.
Young said the aim of the cohort is to help these students maintain their community as they navigate the transition to a new institution.
"It's a challenge when you learn that your institution is going to be closing," Young said. "We want to make sure that we're doing as much as we can to support them with the transition and making sure that they're feeling welcomed and that they belong here."
Among those making the move is Haley Joiner, a rising senior in vocal performance. Joiner, who is serving as a resident assistant in Hardwick Hall, originally planned to complete her degree at UArts but is now adjusting to life at Temple.
"At first, it felt very surreal," Joiner said. "A few months ago, I would've never expected myself in this position. But now I'm feeling very optimistic."
Joiner said as an RA who has had to navigate the grief of her school's closure, she feels well-positioned to help other students through the transition.
"I feel like I can offer a new perspective to students and tell them that change is inevitable, and to embrace the changes that come with transferring to a new school," she said.
Young said that perspective is exactly why the university decided to hire resident assistants who formerly studied at UArts.
"It will also allow us to provide some more focused resources knowing that they're living together in a community … academic supports, mental health supports, engagement opportunities," Young said.
Another former UArts student, Ryan Alise, who is also a rising senior and a new RA at Temple, said the past few months have been an emotional roller coaster. Alise, who studied jazz vocal performance at UArts, was planning to be an RA at UArts.
"I was really excited to be an RA for this year," she said. "I was like, oh that's everything down the drain."
She soon realized that wouldn't totally be the case after Temple offered her a position to serve as a resident assistant on her new campus.
"I felt so grateful, so blessed. To have them reach out to me and say, 'Hey, we'd like to have you on our team' was amazing," Alise said.
Because Alise chose to live in Johnson Hall, not everyone who lives by her is going to be a total stranger.
"A lot of them are my friends, and a lot of them are like my siblings, so that's really fun that they're still nearby," she said.
In her new dorm room, she even has a view of some of her former University of the Arts buildings. She says while it's bittersweet, she's now trying to be optimistic.
"It's a new opportunity," Alise said. "Let's look at the good as opposed to the bad."
