The empty lot behind Anderson Hall is now filled by the new sophomore-centric residence, Stanton Hall, which houses 150 students spread out across three floors and several sections.

The Hall is named after Whitman alumnus John W. Stanton, who graduated in 1977 and made his mark on the wireless industry.

In its construction, Whitman College administration wanted to create a center for sophomore life. In the previous years, sophomores had been spread out and disconnected from Greek Life offering the only central hub. While it is still too early to know whether they will succeed, many students believe that they are on the right track with only a few setbacks.

Gallery • 4 Photos

Caroline Ashford Arya

Ethan Treadwell, one of the many students to move into Stanton on August 24th, shared the good and the bad of living in Stanton.

“I would say that we were spoiled, a little bit. One quote that I have to boil it down to is something that stuck out, in my head, that my dad said on move-in day: ‘wow, they really should’ve saved this for the seniors.’ I responded with: ‘yeah, there’s not really a whole lot of upward mobility after sophomore year,” Treadwell said.

However, he was quick to bring up the primary issue with Stanton.

“It feels like a hotel right now because we haven’t developed the character of the building yet. Like, you know, Anderson has its character, Lyman has its character, and people feel comfortable in those spaces knowing its character,” Treadwell said. “Stanton doesn’t have that yet, and people feel like it’s a hotel. Like, what you do in a hotel is scurry through the lobby and run down the hall, then shut yourself in your room. That’s kinda where people are at right now.”

Ori Alon, a member of Tamarac, also commented on this.

“At times Stanton feels like a hotel. I found that when I was first moving in. Now that I’m a little more used to it, it seems slightly more homey. I think it just is very new, and because of that, it’s a little bit staged,” Alon said. “Everything is pristine and clean, which should be a good thing, but after coming from a freshman dorm like Jewett where everything is a little bit janky, it seems almost superficial.”

Furthermore, Stanton isn’t yet completed. It is functional, but there are still places where the work has yet to be finished. Not only that, but members of Stanton are subject to the sounds of construction on the new dining hall as well as the courtyard between the two.

Cailin Bloom loves the new space but echoes the frustration of living in close proximity to major construction.

“I’m on the first floor, and they start construction at 8 in the morning till 5 PM, which means if I try to take a nap in the middle of the day, I can’t in my bedroom,” said Bloom. “There are also some things in the kitchen that don’t have handles yet, and on move-in day, the elevator wasn’t working.”

Despite these minor issues, the sophomores are incredibly excited to make Stanton their new home and create a center for sophomore life.

“Obviously I think it’s really nice, and it’s achieving their goal of unifying the sophomores into a more centralized location,” said Treadwell. “I think it does actually help that it’s pretty close to the interest houses where more sophomores would be.”

Bloom was surprised, in the first few weeks, to meet many sophomores she had never met or seen before.

“It’s definitely on its way to being [a center of sophomore life] because so far I’ve met so many second-years I hadn’t even seen before on campus,” said Bloom.  “It has been really cool, like, for example, the piano right there. Just listening to people play, then going out and sitting while they play is really cool.”

Feel free to stop by Stanton. The living area is usually quiet, but often you can hear a ping-pong game in the distant recesses of Stanton Hall.