Allocating Dorm Rooms and Parking Spaces
According to this article in the Nicholls Worth yesterday (3/19/2009), the way in which room assignments will be made by a new system. The first pick of rooms will, if Dean Johnson’s plan is not overturned, is one based upon personal characteristics–GPA and classification. In chapter 6 in my principles of economics classes, we examined the efficiency and the fairness of different systems in allocating resources to various uses and to various users.
Here are a few questions to think about in addressing the situation and for you to write back in response in the comments section.
Is Dean Johnson’s proposed system an efficient one in allocating rooms? Can you think of how a system might be more efficient, that is, how improvements can be made that would increase the wellbeing (surplus) of the winners by more than the losses in wellbeing by the losers? For instance, how would a market, an auction, work to allocate the rooms to those who want them the most? How fair would various systems of allocating rooms be? How well would a lottery work in terms of fairness? in terms of efficiency?
If all students were charged the same for their room, whether it was a choice room, or more of a dump, would that be fair even if the rooms were allocated by lottery (chance)? And what if rooms were allocated by majority rule? Would that be efficient? Fair?
Consider the current system to establish current “property rights.” Is the reallignment or redistribution of property rights via the process that Dean Johnson is using, by a vote of the student committee mentioned in the article a “fair process?”
If you are a commuter student and have no concern or knowledge of the housing allocation method currently being used, you might want to think about how parking decal requirements limits the number of cars that can park on campus (and diverts non-payers to Bowie Road) and how personal characteristics (student vs. faculty/staff) and first-come-first-served further allocates or rations parking spaces, and about the fairness and efficiencey issues that surround our parking allocation methods.
Well, try answering some of these questions, or think of similar ones with some of the other systems mentioned in the text, such as command or force.
-MC
March 29th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
I do not believe that Dean Johnson’s proposed system is efficient in allocating rooms. I think they should use the allocation method of the first-come, first-served, as they have always used. The lottery method would not be fair, nor efficient, because it would be based on luck. If all the rooms were the same price, then it would be fair for them to be allocated by the lottery method. If rooms were allocated by majority rule, then freshman would get first pick(because we are the largest class). But it would not be fair to everyone else. The student committee that Dean Johnson used was not a “fair process” because they are not the voice of the student body, as you can see by all of the grievances that were filed about this issue.
March 29th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
I am glad to say that the facebook group “Nicholls Housing is tripin” mention in the Nicholls Worth was started by I. I feel that having a lottery on deciding where I should live is pointless. I heard someone say that the new point system was pointless, this statement was true because why would housing try to fix a system that was not broken. Nicholls plans where to use the new dorms as “bait” to make the incoming freshman come to Nicholls. The systm would not be fair. If I had a 3.5 and my roommate had a 2.0, I would not want to room with him because he would bring down my chances to live in a new dorm.
April 29th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
I believe the way Dean Johnson’s proposed system is stated is completely unfair. I don’t think that by focusing on the GPA to get a room should be even considered. Based on the subject first-come, first-served, students should get the opportunity of getting a room in the dorms based on who can afford to live in campus, Who can afford to pay for a room. Lottery is ridiculous because you take away the opportunity for students who can pay for it and do not live in the Houma-Thibodaux area the chance of paying and living near school. Instead you could create a loss of people trying to go to other schools because dorm-room availability is not in jeopardy or under rules based on GPA and chance like Nicholls is pretending to apply. As far as limited parking spaces. There isn’t much space around. If you do not get here early enough chances are you will not find a space and park outside campus. Buy a decal, get to school early if you can. Otherwise, the school should plan on building a new parking lot, instead.