Break Housing

Academic Year Break Housing

During the academic year, the residence halls close for Winter Break in November and Spring Break in March. This provides many students with a much-needed respite from campus to refresh and recharge. It is also an opportunity for any necessary high-impact facilities projects to be completed.  

Break housing is viewed as an opportunity to better serve our students who need extra flexibility and is offered at no extra cost to our residents. That being said, all College policies remain in effect. If a student’s behavior becomes problematic, then they risk losing this privilege altogether.  

Residents who are in good financial and academic standing with the college are eligible to remain in their housing assignment over Winter break. All residential buildings will remain open, and residents will have full access to their spaces for the entire duration of Winter break. 

The Office of Residential Life is closed between December 24, 2025 and January 5, 2026. Emails and phone calls will not be monitored during this time. Our office will resume normal business hours on January 5, 2026. 

Residents should prioritize keeping their keys and identification with them at all times during the break period to avoid getting locked out of the building and/or their room. 

Residents are encouraged to call the RA duty phone associated with their building during these days if they need immediate assistance from our staff from 7pm-7am. Outside of these hours, residents may contact the Office of Residential Life for assistance or Campus Safety for lockouts.   

Please note wait times for assistance may vary due to reduced staffing in buildings during break periods. 

RA Duty Phone Numbers per building: 

  • Harmon and Hoben Halls: 269-330-0111 
  • Crissey and Severn Halls: 269-330-2809 
  • Trowbridge and DeWaters Halls: 269-330-6226 

Eligibility and Request Procedures 

All students who currently reside on campus and will be residing in the same space for the following term are eligible to request break housing. Students who will be leaving the College (withdrawal or transfer) or are studying abroad/away after the current term are not permitted to reside on campus during break periods.  

Requests must be made via an electronic form, which will be made available during the latter part of Fall and Winter Terms. 

Students who do not properly request to stay over break must check out of their rooms by the advertised deadline and following the required procedures. Those who fail to do so are subject to improper checkout or unapproved late stay fees. For those who do not request break housing, it is not permissible to stay in one’s room beyond the closing deadline or to return prior to opening, and students are expected to make their travel arrangements accordingly. Any student found to be in violation of this will be subject to improper checkout/unapproved late stay fee and required to vacate the residence hall within 24 hours.  

Personal belongings may be left behind if the student in question is returning to the same room for the following quarter. However, the College recommends that valuables be taken home, if possible. Those leaving campus housing at the end of any given term must fully vacate their room and return their key(s) prior to departing campus or they will be charged for a lock change and any other necessary measures. 

Dining Services 

Campus Dining Services are not operational, nor are term meal plans active, during breaks. Students staying on campus are responsible for their own meals. 

Unapproved Late Stay 

During the academic year, the residence halls close during College break periods. These dates are published and shared well in advance so that residents can make appropriate travel arrangements. Residential Life staff count on residents following advertised residence hall closing procedures, including closing dates and times, in order to complete closing of the residence facilities and administrative tasks in a timely manner.  

Any resident who fails to abide by residence hall closing procedures, specifically dates and times, will be subject to a daily unapproved late stay fee of $100 per day. The only residents who will be permitted to stay in the residential system beyond the posted residence hall closing dates and times will be those who are required to be on campus for College events and functions or those who have signed up for break/summer housing on campus.  

Leaving Campus for Break? 

Residents that are leaving campus for break, but returning to the same space for the following term should complete the following before leaving for break: 

  • Clean your space, including any shared spaces in suites.  
  • Properly dispose of any trash.  
  • Clean your mini-fridge and dispose of any perishable items (Defrost and unplug it over winter break). 
  • Turn off all faucets in suite or semi-suite bathrooms.  
  • Unplug all electronics.  
  • Close and lock all windows. Close the blinds.  
  • Turn off every light.  
  • Turn off any alarm clocks.  
  • Close and lock the door.  
  • Check your mailbox for any mail or packages.  
  • Make sure you have any documents, identification, and/or medications that you will need over the break period. 

Summer Housing

The residence halls close for Summer Break in mid-June and re-open for Fall Term in early September. This is a time when the majority of students leave campus and our Facilities Management team completes deferred or other high-impact facilities projects. We do recognize that some students may have a need to stay in Kalamazoo during the summer months therefore, Summer Housing is viewed as an opportunity to better serve our students who need this extra flexibility.

Eligibility, Cost, and Application

All students who are registered for classes during the spring term immediately preceding and the fall term immediately following the summer are eligible for summer housing. All College and Residential Life policies are in-place and enforced during the summer and violation of these policies may result in immediate removal from summer housing.

Summer housing costs $150 per week for the duration of stay (rounded up to the nearest week).

The summer housing application will be made available below during May and all students requesting summer housing must submit the application by no later than June 1st.

On the summer housing application, students will be asked to indicate a specific period of consecutive days during which they will be on campus for summer housing. Summer housing charges will be applied to their student account according to the College’s billing arrangements. A student may spend some period of time within their indicated block away from the room (a vacation, for example) but must pay for the entire block. Students who check out early will still be charged for the entire block. This block of time may be extended at the student’s written request, but may not exceed the posted summer housing move-out date. Accounts will not be pro-rated once charges have been posted.

Check-In

Students who will have a continuous stay from spring to summer will remain in their assigned spring term space until summer housing spaces have been cleaned and inspected by custodial and facilities management staff. Students will likely move from their spring to summer assignments one to two weeks after commencement.

Students who will be returning to campus later in the summer, but before the fall term, will be expected to fully vacate their assigned spring space during the normal checkout timeline before commencement. Storage lockers are available for rental through the Office of Student Development for $25 for the summer.

All check-ins for summer housing will be in the Office of Student Development during normal business hours or with Campus Safety after hours.

Check-Out

Students who will be moving out of summer housing before the end of August will be required to turn in their room key to the Office of Student Development during normal business hours. If a student’s room key is turned in more than 2 days after their intended move-out date, they will be charged for an additional week of summer housing.

Students without a fall term housing assignment must move out of summer housing by no later than Sunday, August 10 at 12:00pm (noon) and turn in their room key to the summer RA.

Students with a fall housing assignment will be permitted to move to their fall spaces on or before that date.

Prior to all check-outs, students must make sure their spaces are fully emptied and cleaned. Students are responsible and may be charged for extraordinary cleaning, damage, and abandoned personal property upon check-out. Any student who fails to return their room key will face lock and key replacement charges.

Location, Room Types, and Dining

Summer housing locations are determined in partnership with Facilities Management based on planned facilities projects. All summer residents are provided a private bedroom for the duration of their summer stay. Campus Dining Services are not operational during the summer, so students staying on campus are responsible for their own meals. Each residence hall is equipped with at least one full kitchen for students to utilize.

Summer Housing Request Form

Sorry. This form is no longer available.