The Mount Vernon campus has gone through a drastic change this year, with a 40 percent increase in residents and a new dining area, event space, theatre and gym being utilized by all members of the GW community. Overlooking the tennis courts and athletic fields, the brand new state-of-the-art residence hall has drawn students from every class to live in this year.
“Living on the Vern as a junior is not bad at all,” says Summer Zhang, a current resident of West Hall. “People usually want to get into bustle and hustle on Foggy Bottom as an upper class student. I really enjoy my time on the Vern with quietness and greeneries outside my window.”
Ever since GW students started living on the Mount Vernon campus, there has been a negative stereotype about the types of students that live on the quieter, smaller campus. Now, West Hall is challenging that stereotype with its incomparable amenities being offered and attracting a diverse range of students. “Living on the Vern does not mean I don't have a social life,” says Zhang. “I spend more time in my friends' rooms when I am on Foggy Bottom and my friends will come to the Vern to visit me. The residents on the floor (composed of sophomores, juniors and seniors) are quiet but they are social. We have cabinet members, co-curriculum guides, leaders in fraternities and sororities, singers, pianists, and many others. It's a very diverse and active group.”
A recent confusion however has been with the re-naming of the residence hall, formerly known as Pelham. It has been clarified that the common area of the building (floors B1 and B2), which is accessible by all GW students and includes a gym, dining hall, black-box theatre and much more, is called Pelham Commons. Meanwhile the top four floors is all residential space, only accessible to residents of the building, and that is called West Hall.
“West Hall has truly been awesome,” says Andrew Adams, a sophomore resident. “After coming from Mitchell, West Hall is so nice - very clean and the rooms are truly the perfect size; I don't feel cramped at all. But, the best part about West Hall is that I get to enjoy the atmosphere that a city gives, while at the same time enjoying the Vern campus and its small college and suburban feel.”
“While living here has been very pleasant, there have been some hiccups along the way,” says sophomore Henry Przybylowicz. The Vern Express is still working out scheduling with the increase of students travelling to and from the Vern and students did not have access to mail for the first week of school. But that is expected with any new residence hall. “Overall the experience in living here has been good barring the small bumps in the beginning,” says Przybylowicz.
