Learning Resources

Abstract: Leveling or even declining enrollment and the current economic recession in higher education have forced many colleges to suspend or cut back plans for new construction and to consider the re-use and recycling of existing buildings. One candidate for rehabilitation: the campus chapel. The possibilities were examined at a two-day conference at Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio February 26-27, which provided the basis for this article.

Abstract: Building cost escalation has forced up the price of new campus housing to the point that, under conventional planning and construction methods, dormitory space can cost as much as $10,000 or more per bed. Given such costs, many institutions find it difficult if not impossible to finance new housing without raising student rental charges to prohibitive levels. In response, a number of institutions have sought ways to provide housing at substantially lower cost. One solution is the so-called "turnkey" approach, in which a developer plans, designs, and builds new housing to meet the institution's specifications at a predetermined, fixed cost. This article describes the successful application of the turnkey technique at three institutions--the Universities of Rhode Island, Vermont, and Delaware.