The Office of Housing and Residential Life hosted the Beecon Welcome Back Celebration Tuesday, March 10.
The bee-themed event took place in the Dining Commons in the East Residence Hall from 8:30 to 10 p.m. and featured mocktails, desserts, music and several stations manned by RAs for residents to enjoy. These stations included vision board making, flower bouquet making, bracelet making and custom goodie bags. Residents could also play games like cornhole to win prizes ranging from small keychains to large stuffed animals. The event also included a raffle to win a pair of AirPods.
The celebration was held to welcome back some of the hundreds of residents who were displaced by the flood in the East Residence Hall February 9. Currently, students who live in the orange and yellow hallways, as well as those on the 11th and 12th floors, have been able to return to the building. Students who live in the blue hallways of floors 2 through 7 and all residents from floors 8 through 10 remain in alternate university-provided housing. All East Hall residents, including those still displaced, were invited to the celebration.
“The good part is they’re trying to get everything back into good spirits, but the bad thing is they’re trying to sugarcoat it… and it’s like we can’t move on. We were literally homeless for three weeks,” resident Mia Ammar said.
Ammar was in Anthropology class when the flood occurred and was left with nothing but her school backpack. She had to stay with family during the three weeks the East Hall was closed. She said she is glad to be back in the dorms. “It’s way better than commuting every day,” Ammar said.
Another returning resident, Anwita Bhagwat, shared similar sentiments. “My classes are early in the morning, so it’s good to be back on campus,” she said. “And I’m an out-of-state student, so I don’t have anywhere else to stay in Boston.”
Bhagwat appreciated the event but raised concerns for the students who remain displaced. “We didn’t have a stable place to stay,” she said. “Like, what about the out-of-state students and the international students? What about the blue hall students who got permanently moved out?”
According to the Res Hall Support page on the university’s website, Capstone On-Campus Management has a phased re-occupancy plan for residents, starting with the first wave February 27. They plan to allow more students back into their dorms pending construction and inspection. It is unclear if the OHRL will host future welcome back events once more students return.