Anticipating a low number of students on leave, and with a large incoming freshman class, Pomona College opted last May to install modular units on Athern Field behind Clark I, adding 15 extra dorm rooms for students. The Administration also decided to postpone renovations in Frary until next year.

Named the Athern Court Modular Village (and nicknamed "Trailer Clark"), the new complex is home to 22 students and one RA.

Dean of Students Ann Quinley expressed that she was unwilling to repeat the housing crunch from previous years (in which Lyon doubles were made into triples) by waiting. She also cited the value of social rooms and other gathering areas on campus, Quinley said the College made "last minute decisions" in favor of "a little more rather than a little less space."

The delay in the Frary renovations resulted from noise concerns for nearby students. Rooms in Clark I were remodeled over the summer, but Frary was not finished and construction in Frary may have affected power and water supplies for surrounding dorm rooms.

Many seniors were happy to be able to eat at Frary their last year, but many juniors regret their senior year will offer only a substitute dining hall.

"I think it’s a wonderful idea to wait, but the decision should’ve been made before school got out last year," Regan Douglass ’02 said.

"I had friends that chose to live [on] south [campus] this year for the renovations, and were looking forward to living up north with the new Frary," Sara Palmer ’03 said.

Construction crews did change out ducts and toilets in Frary, Quinley said, but the rest will have to wait.

According to Quinley, the decision to install the modular units was a five-college program and required the use of different fields across the campuses to compensate for the loss of Athern Field.

The city of Claremont gave permission for the addition of the modular units for this year and possibly next year, Quinley said.

The Administration anticipated an incoming freshman class of 375 students and was going to accept 75 transfer students, however 395 freshman accepted admission. The Office of Admissions accepted fewer transfer students to compensate.

"We’ve had larger classes for the last several years. Over time, enrollment edged up," Quinley said. "I’ve felt for a while that the occupancy was too high."

The changes have also had considerable financial consequences.

"I don’t yet have the total cost of installing and renting the modulars, because the landscaping is not yet complete. The rental cost is approximately $100,000 per year; the installation cost will be quite a bit more than that," Financial Vice President Carlene Miller explained.

Seventy-two students are now on leave, Quinley said, but they notified the College too late for it to be of any consequence.

The new dorm rooms do afford large rooms and nice carpeting, said Erika Bylund ’04.

But for the students ( most of whom were deferred during room draw last year), adjustment has been a unique situation in college living. Some complained of marijuana smoke circulating through vents, thin walls, excessive noise from construction and bug problems.

Sophomore Jeff Mora said that this small liberal arts institution boasts the benefits of campus living, but the sophomores in the modular units are disappointingly isolated from the rest of their class.

Students got to choose roommates, but did not find out where they would be living until late August.

"It was disappointing to see how some sophomores got rooms in Norton Clark," Mora said.

"We estimate that the cost of the Frary renovation will be about five percent greater because of the delay. That five percent estimate is based on our expectation of inflation in the construction industry during the one-year delay," Miller said.

The Administration plans to reconvene last year’s committee to review renovations for next year, Quinley said.