About
This website is home to an in-depth comparative investigation into the quality of life for students living in on-campus residence halls at the universities of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
The SEC is an athletic conference comprising 14 large universities in the southeastern United States. Those universities include:
The SEC is an athletic conference comprising 14 large universities in the southeastern United States. Those universities include:
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![Picture](/uploads/1/5/3/9/15396900/4989581.jpg?413)
Freshmen run through the David R. Francis Quadrangle at
the University of Missouri. The Quad is a symbol of school pride
and history, according to the university’s alumni association.
Photo by the University of Missouri System.
the University of Missouri. The Quad is a symbol of school pride
and history, according to the university’s alumni association.
Photo by the University of Missouri System.
An extensive investigation into these universities involved six areas of research related to the well-being of students: health and safety information, provided services for students, living expenses per year, crime information and relative location to main campus facilities.
Before investigating, the group behind this website compiled detailed information regarding on-campus residence halls and the layout of each campus. Profiles of each residence hall were created that included information on when each facility was constructed, the building materials for each dorm, and the number of stories and rooms available for occupancy in each building.
This information provided excellent background into the attributes of the facilities available for students to live in on campus. Also, campus maps for each university were obtained to illustrate the general layout of each campus and to show where each residence hall was located in relation to major points of interest on campus, such libraries, gymnasiums and food courts. With each member of the group assigned a specific university, we collectively compiled the same information for each university.
The first subject related to on-campus living that we investigated is health and safety information. Health and safety information related to on-campus living includes documents revealing health inspection findings, any occurrences of illness outbreaks, reports that recognize building materials for residence halls that might pose a health hazard (namely asbestos and lead paint) and safety information (including fire alarm monitoring and incidents of fires that occurred in residence halls.) Documents that were used for this section of research include newspaper articles, official reports published by departments in each university and other documents.
To document potential health-related concerns that are present in the area surrounding each university, we used the Environmental Protection Agency’s website to map the instances of toxic substances released to air, toxic releases to water, toxic substances located in the area, superfund sites, water discharger sites, and air emission monitoring sites within a one-mile radius of each university.
As defined by the EPA, superfund sites are attempts by the federal government to clean up uncontrolled hazardous waste sites. EPA water discharger sites monitor what the EPA deems as facilities that can potentially release hazardous material into the environment. EPA air emissions monitoring sites were taken into consideration because they monitor locations where potentially hazardous emissions in the air can occur.
Using EPA records, the group was able to determine cancer rates for the immediate areas surrounding each university. Taking into consideration these cancer statistics and the possible environmental health hazards present in the areas in which each university is located in, the group was able to assess how this data may directly affect individuals attending these schools.
Before investigating, the group behind this website compiled detailed information regarding on-campus residence halls and the layout of each campus. Profiles of each residence hall were created that included information on when each facility was constructed, the building materials for each dorm, and the number of stories and rooms available for occupancy in each building.
This information provided excellent background into the attributes of the facilities available for students to live in on campus. Also, campus maps for each university were obtained to illustrate the general layout of each campus and to show where each residence hall was located in relation to major points of interest on campus, such libraries, gymnasiums and food courts. With each member of the group assigned a specific university, we collectively compiled the same information for each university.
The first subject related to on-campus living that we investigated is health and safety information. Health and safety information related to on-campus living includes documents revealing health inspection findings, any occurrences of illness outbreaks, reports that recognize building materials for residence halls that might pose a health hazard (namely asbestos and lead paint) and safety information (including fire alarm monitoring and incidents of fires that occurred in residence halls.) Documents that were used for this section of research include newspaper articles, official reports published by departments in each university and other documents.
To document potential health-related concerns that are present in the area surrounding each university, we used the Environmental Protection Agency’s website to map the instances of toxic substances released to air, toxic releases to water, toxic substances located in the area, superfund sites, water discharger sites, and air emission monitoring sites within a one-mile radius of each university.
As defined by the EPA, superfund sites are attempts by the federal government to clean up uncontrolled hazardous waste sites. EPA water discharger sites monitor what the EPA deems as facilities that can potentially release hazardous material into the environment. EPA air emissions monitoring sites were taken into consideration because they monitor locations where potentially hazardous emissions in the air can occur.
Using EPA records, the group was able to determine cancer rates for the immediate areas surrounding each university. Taking into consideration these cancer statistics and the possible environmental health hazards present in the areas in which each university is located in, the group was able to assess how this data may directly affect individuals attending these schools.
![Picture](/uploads/1/5/3/9/15396900/2745914.jpg?431)
Vanderbilt students display an assignment.
Photo by Derek Bruff.
Photo by Derek Bruff.
The next area the group investigated is the services provided at each hall at each university. We found documents published by each university that detailed health and wellness services available for students. Analyzed services include residence hall life programs, the availabilities of meal plans, illness prevention services, etc. At UF, for example, services provided in the residence halls that we investigated included Faculty-in-Residence programs, Living Learning Communities, GatorWell programs and the Innovation Academy. We looked into what each service aims to do and compared other universities to determine if they had similar programs available for students.
Next, the group examined in- and out-of-state tuition and housing expenses for each university from 2008-2011. We displayed this data using bar graphs, which allowed us to analyze the extent of the increase in prices over time in an in-depth visual manner. We were also able to determine which universities are more economical than others.
Furthermore, the next area the group investigated regarding on-campus living is crime information. Criminal activity was divided into specific crimes including homicides, burglaries, robberies and sex-related offenses.
This information was obtained from official reports distributed by the campus police departments. At UF, we used the Gainesville Police Department and UF Police Department to locate reports regarding criminal activity that took place at specific locations on campus. We also looked at old local newspaper archives to find articles that described specific on-campus crimes in great detail. This same methodology was used for the other universities we investigated. This data was used to illustrate whether there were any noticeable increases or decreases in crime over time, or whether certain criminal activities were more significant and some universities compared to others.
This part of the research provided highly useful information as it is important to prospective and current students’ safety and security that they know the level of criminal activity that is taking place on their campuses.
The group intended to investigate the quality of life of students who live on campus at the University of Florida and other major SEC schools including the University of Georgia, the University of Alabama, the University of Arkansas, Auburn University and Texas A&M University. We investigated six primary areas of research in order to hopefully come to a supported conclusion to which university’s residence facilities provide the “best” quality of life for its students.
Next, the group examined in- and out-of-state tuition and housing expenses for each university from 2008-2011. We displayed this data using bar graphs, which allowed us to analyze the extent of the increase in prices over time in an in-depth visual manner. We were also able to determine which universities are more economical than others.
Furthermore, the next area the group investigated regarding on-campus living is crime information. Criminal activity was divided into specific crimes including homicides, burglaries, robberies and sex-related offenses.
This information was obtained from official reports distributed by the campus police departments. At UF, we used the Gainesville Police Department and UF Police Department to locate reports regarding criminal activity that took place at specific locations on campus. We also looked at old local newspaper archives to find articles that described specific on-campus crimes in great detail. This same methodology was used for the other universities we investigated. This data was used to illustrate whether there were any noticeable increases or decreases in crime over time, or whether certain criminal activities were more significant and some universities compared to others.
This part of the research provided highly useful information as it is important to prospective and current students’ safety and security that they know the level of criminal activity that is taking place on their campuses.
The group intended to investigate the quality of life of students who live on campus at the University of Florida and other major SEC schools including the University of Georgia, the University of Alabama, the University of Arkansas, Auburn University and Texas A&M University. We investigated six primary areas of research in order to hopefully come to a supported conclusion to which university’s residence facilities provide the “best” quality of life for its students.