Academic Year Housing
Choosing a Hall
American University Residence Hall Overview
There
are six residence halls on the main campus, all of which are non-smoking,
air-conditioned and within close proximity to classrooms, dining facilities,
Bender Library, the Sports Center, and the main Quad. American University
recently completed a multi-million dollar residence hall renovation project,
and each hall offers a variety of comforts, including television lounges,
complete kitchens and laundry facilities. Every room on campus is connected
to EagleNet, offering access to free e-mail, campus software packages and
the internet. (Note: Ethernet cards are necessary to access EagleNet.) Every
room has individually controlled air conditioning and heat, and free cable
service.
As you read about the halls, you may want to refer to the campus map to
get a sense of the geographic layout of the campus. If you so choose, you
can also take a virtual tour
of the campus.
Below are also some pictures of residence hall rooms at American University (furnishings not included):
North and South Campus Information
American University residence halls are divided into two sections: North and South Campus.
The North Campus includes:
| Hughes Hall | Hughes Hall is known for its strong sense of community and involvement shared by its residents and houses two Honors floors. Hughes has five co-ed floors, one all-female floor, and a computer cluster. | |
| McDowell Hall | Leonard Hall is the international/intercultural hall, in which multiculturalism is a primary focus. Leonard has five co-ed floors, two all-female floors, and a computer cluster. | |
| Leonard Hall | McDowell Hall houses the North Campus Fitness Center and the North Complex Office. It also has five co-ed floors, two all-female floors, and a computer cluster. |
The South Campus includes:
| Anderson Hall | Anderson Hall houses more students than any other hall, is home to an Honors floor, several Greek Chapter Rooms and the Anderson Computing Complex. All floors in Anderson Hall are co-ed. | |
| Centennial Hall | Centennial Hall is the returning student hall noted for its semi-private bathrooms. All floors in Centennial Hall are co-ed. | |
| Letts Hall | Letts Hall is the second largest residence hall, housing the Community Service Floor, an Honors floor, the South Campus Fitness Center, and the Game and Recreation Center. Letts Hall has six co-ed floors and one all-female floor. |
Students participating in the Washington Semester Program are housed at the Tenley Campus. For more information about these housing options, please click here. For more information about the Washington Semester Program, click here.
Most students live in double rooms with one roommate. However, during periods of a high demand for space, it may be necessary to create additional housing by converting some double rooms into triple rooms or by otherwise utilizing residence hall space. In either case, significant discounts are applied. Students whose housing applications are received later could be affected in such cases, and will be notified as soon as possible. Single rooms are not available to new undergraduates. Students with special housing needs (e.g. physical disabilities) must contact Housing and Dining Programs no later than May 1 for the following Fall for maximum consideration. Generally speaking special accommodation requests will be considered only for those students requiring considerable specialized equipment (e.g. wheelchair) and/or substantial facility modifications.
As noted above, there are several special interest floors. Choosing to participate in the Honors Program will result in students being automatically assigned to the Honors floors of Anderson, Letts or Hughes Halls. (Upperclass Honors students may request to live on Centennial third floor.) There is also a Community Service Floor on 1-South in Letts. (All assignments are done on an as-available basis.) For more information on these floors, please call Housing and Dining Programs at 202-885-3370, or send an e-mail to housinganddiningprograms@american.edu.
Safety
is a primary concern for parents, students, and the University. In its CORE
Survey of students in the Spring of 2002, the Office of Campus Life found
that 95.4% of all residents agreed with the statement, "Do you feel safe on-campus?"
Why is this rating so high? There are a number of important reasons. Residence
halls are locked 24-hours a day and can only be entered using the student's
specially coded AUID. Students may visit other halls, but only with an escort.
American University's Department of Public Safety is committed to ensuring
the safety of all students. Crime prevention efforts include a 24-hour escort
service, emergency phones across the campus, and physical defense courses.
Students play a tremendous role in residence hall security. Simply by locking your door when not in the room, even if only for a few seconds, is the best measure students can take to protect their belongings. Furthermore, keeping your door locked at all times, especially at night when asleep, is another good way to enhance your personal safety and security. Finally, by reporting suspicious persons or activity to hall staff, and by not escorting strangers into the halls as their "guests," resident students can greatly impact the overall safety and security of the residence halls.
General Policy on Pets/Animals in the Residence Halls
Animals/Pets are not permitted in any university housing. Exceptions to the no pet rule will be made only by the Executive Director of Housing and Dining in consultation with the appropriate offices (i.e., Disability Support Services, General Counsel, etc.).
The mission of Housing
and Dining Programs is to develop a safe, culturally engaging, living-learning
community through high-quality programs and collaborative service delivery.
The Office of Campus Life fosters an inclusive, welcoming, collaborative work
environment and is committed to the recruitment and retention of a diverse
workforce. We comply with affirmative action and equal employment opportunity
laws and regulations.