Student Life and the Residential Experience for Spring Term

Houses at a Glance

• Colonial: Bingham, Booth, Canfield, Kilpatrick, Dewey, Leigh, Franklin, Stokes, McCullough, Swan, Welling, Woolley (1930s)*
• Barnes: Fels, Noyes, Sawtell (1970s)*
• Woo: Merck, Paris-Borden, Perkins (2000s)*
• Co-op/Alternative Housing: Welling Townhouse (co-op), Longmeadow, Paran Creek Apartments (intentional living houses). You must live on campus for at least one year before you are eligible to live in the Welling Townhouse, Longmeadow, or Paran Creek Apartments (applications required). **

* Due to housing demands from other College programs during FWT, students in Fels, Merck, Noyes, Paris-Borden, Perkins, Sawtell, and Bingham, will need to store their belongings in designated areas provided by the College. All students must vacate over the summer break.

**Students must live on campus for at least one year before they are eligible to live in the Welling Townhouse, Paran Creek, or Longmeadow. 

House Chairs

Each house has two House Chairs, undergraduate students serving as community leaders to house residents. They are knowledgeable about resources available on campus, serve as liaisons between campus services and your house, and run a weekly house meeting called Coffee Hour. Whether there’s a problem with noise, or cleaning the kitchen, a discussion about campus issues, or a house dinner to coordinate, Coffee Hour is where it will be addressed. Your House Chairs will be here to greet you when you arrive and will be available throughout the term to help with any housing issues you might have.

Furnishings

Student rooms are approximately 10'x13', with variations depending on the architecture of the house.

Note: College furnishings cannot be removed from student rooms and storage space is limited, so you are strongly discouraged from bringing large furnishings (e.g. sofa, futon, etc.) with you to campus.

You and your roommate(s) each will have the following furnishings for your room:

• Twin-size bed (mattress, box spring, and frame)—note: you will need to bring your own bedding (extra-long sheets, pillow(s), blanket(s), mattress cover)
• Desk and chair
• Bookcase
• Dresser
• Closet or wardrobe
• Internet access (wired and wireless)

Permitted Items

We encourage you to coordinate with your roommate(s) if you plan to bring certain electronics or small appliances, such as TVs, stereo equipment, and refrigerators.

Your room is your home away from home at Bennington, so we want you to make it as comfortable as possible. Keep in mind that you will need to move all of your belongings out of the room at some point (sometimes twice) each year so be mindful of how much stuff you bring. There is a Home Depot, Walmart and Job-Lots in town.

• Microwaves, mini-fridges, hair dryers, electric aroma diffusers, and solar-powered twinkle lights are allowed to be used (plugged in) in your room—other plug-in devices (e.g., hair irons, clothing irons, rice cookers, electric kettle, Keurig coffee makers, etc.) can only be used (plugged in) in the bathrooms and kitchens
• Seasonal clothing (heavy coat, hat, boots, gloves, and rain gear)
• Bedding—pillow, comforters, blankets, mattress cover, mattress pad, and linens (all beds require twin extra-long sheets)
• Hangers
• Towels and shower caddy
• Toiletries
• Laundry bag/basket and detergent
• Pictures, posters, and other decorative items (can be hung with sticky tack or small push pins)
• Alarm clock
• Lamps (desk, floor)—lamps are not furnished and most rooms in the Colonial houses do not provide overhead lighting; 13-watt or 19-watt compact fluorescent light bulbs are encouraged, or incandescent bulbs of 60 watts or less
• Power strips (UL listed only); extension cords are not permitted
• Computer
• Stereo equipment
• Dorm-sized refrigerator (less than 3 cubic feet); refrigerators are also available in-house kitchens
• TV and VCR/DVD player; cable television is not provided in student rooms or houses
• Area rugs
• Broom and other cleaning supplies
• Bicycle and lock
• Storage bins for under your bed
• White-noise machine (if you're sensitive to noise)
• Electric aroma diffuser
• Battery-operated twinkle lights

Prohibited Items

If you have any questions about specific items or are unsure if something is prohibited or allowed, please do not hesitate to email housing@bennington.edu.

• Pets (other than fish)
• Hot plate or other appliances with an exposed heating element (coffee makers are allowed in kitchens but cannot be kept in rooms)
• Halogen lamps
• Any heavy-use appliance that exceeds 1,000 watts (air conditioners, electric, kerosene, or gas heaters)
• Candles or incense of any kind (note: possession of such will result in fines and disciplinary action)
• Firearms/weapons
• Plug-in twinkle lights (there are many solar-powered twinkle light alternatives)
• Hoverboards

Housing Accommodations

If you require housing accommodations due to a documented disability (medical, psychological, physical, etc.), please review our Accommodations and Support webpage and complete the Housing Accommodation Application form.

Vehicle Registration

• Automobiles: You may bring a vehicle to campus; parking permits are billed $140 annually ($70 for each term). All vehicles must be registered with Campus Safety by the end of the first week of term, which requires a valid operator’s license, proof of registration, and proof of insurance (the State of Vermont also requires these to be carried in all vehicles).
• Bicycles: Campus Safety strongly encourages you to register your bicycle with their office, free of charge. This helps prevent theft of your bicycle and to identify your bicycle at the end of term when unclaimed bicycles are collected by Student Life. Bicycles must be stored either in bike racks outside the houses or in your room. During Field Work Term, free storage space is available on campus for all registered bicycles.

Safety

Campus Safety officers are on duty seven days a week, 24 hours a day to partner with you to create a safe living and learning environment for everyone.  In addition, Campus Safety oversees vehicle registration, and Campus Safety Officers are available to provide escorts if you're uncomfortable walking in the dark.  Campus Safety personnel regularly make rounds of all College buildings and patrol the campus. For more information regarding safety on campus, contact Campus Safety, 802-447-4250.