Roger Williams Case Study

Over the course of the last few years Roger Williams University has seen an increase in enrollment which has been a positive for the University. However, this higher enrollment, while beneficial to the campus overall, has caused some issues. The most apparent dilemma that plagues Universities experiencing a growth in population is space, and Roger Williams is not immune to this pitfall. Roger Williams’ main campus, in Bristol Rhode Island, is a fairly secluded patch of land that is enclosed. The campus does not take up too much land, and most of the buildings are very close to one another making it difficult to build more facilities within the campus. Furthermore, a number of zoning laws, and town ordinances make building around the current

Arguably the simplest solution would be to expand the Bristol campus. The University, if it decided to do so could expand the Bristol campus by buying land next to, or adjacent to the current campus and build upon that. This would likely open up the campus to more of Bristol, and potentially give the campus more of a social life. Furthermore, buying new land seems to be a trend with the current administration as shown with the creation of the Baypoint residence hall in Portsmouth just a few years ago. This also could help Roger Williams because it would potentially get rid of the current zoning issues that are facing the Universities existing expansion attempts because it would own more land to build on, rather than attempting to build on currently owned property. This could be done by buying new property and creating the necessary facilities. Then the University could offer shuttle services, foot paths, and bike paths to students who need to travel across the, now open,

Roger Williams currently has two campuses, the one in Bristol RI, and the one in Providence RI. Roger Williams University could utilize the Providence campus be expanding it to undergraduate studies. The University could create a system where students decide their housing between either the Providence campus, or the Bristol one, and with that in mind they could then take all their classes at the campus that they are living at. However, this program would only be offered to certain undergraduate programs which could easily transport from campus to campus. This solution does seem to be a bit complicated, but it would be far cheaper that buying new property, or rebuilding a number of old buildings. The Providence campus has a number of new facilities that are barely used throughout the day, facilities that could be used by undergraduate students. The University could also find a way to give students access to shuttle services that can go between the two campuses so that students can utilize both locations. However, if Roger Williams could give students the option to take all of their courses in Bristol or in Providence it is undeniable that a number of students would take the opportunity, if for only one year. This program could act as almost a “mini study abroad” program where students get to study in Providence for a year and get a