As enrollment at Mississippi State University continues to grow, the Department of Housing and Residence Life has plans to accommodate the record number of students.
Ann Bailey, director of housing and residence life, said in an email the occupancy rate on the tenth day of class was 101.9 percent. However, numbers are constantly changing due to non-enrolled student withdrawals and disciplinary suspensions. She said the department currently has a handful of miscellaneous bed spaces available throughout the system.
Arbor Acres, the residence halls currently under construction, are scheduled to be completed by next fall and expected to be ready for move-in by Aug. 11, 2012, in time for MVNU2MSU 2012.
 
 
 
 
“They do not have formal, permanent names,” she said. “The university has given them working names until donors are located, subject to IHL approval: ‘Oak Hall’ and ‘Magnolia Hall.’ These two names acknowledge the native trees in that area.”
The entire residential village has been given a working title of Arbor Village. It includes Rice Hall, Hathorn Hall, Cresswell Hall, South Hall, Magnolia Hall and Oak Hall.
Also, Bailey said plans are currently being put together on a new apartment-style housing development where Aiken Village is currently located. The site is scheduled to be cleared during the spring 2012 semester. It will primarily house graduate students, international students and students with families.
The apartments will open for occupancy in the fall of 2013. The current specifications include 125 two-bedroom, two-bath apartment-style units, with a total of 250 bed spaces.
Bailey said the department is also currently discussing future plans that will be incorporated into the university master plan.
“The goal is to improve the quality of life for our on-campus residents, and we will continue to move in a progressive, state-of-the-art direction,” she said.
Mark Keenum, MSU president, has previously stated after achieving his enrollment goal of 20,000, he hopes to increase it to 22,000 by 2015. Bailey said they are working to accommodate this growth.
 ”We work hand-in-glove with the Office of Admissions & Scholarships and are engaged in regular conversations about enrollment trends and projections,” Bailey said. “Future renovation and construction plans are also part of those conversations and the university will increase bed-space capacity as needed to keep pace with demand.”
Bailey also said Building III, one of the residence halls in Zacharias Village, has temporarily been renamed “North Hall.”