Mark Hudson the director of University Housing and Dining sat down with The Daily Eastern News Associate News Editor Nicole Milstead to talk about his job and his hopes for Eastern.

Question: What is your job?

Answer: As the director I have the responsibility for making sure that students get what they pay for. That it is a high level of service and an environment that enhances student’s success here at Easter.

Q: How long have you been here at Eastern?

A: I have been here most recently since 2001 as the director but I was an undergraduate and a graduate student here from ’76 to ’83.

Q: What do you think has changed the most on campus from when you were a student to now?

A: With out a doubt the most significant change is the level of technology that is a part of our everyday life. Everything from high-speed Internet connection to cell phone uses to those kind of technological evolutions that have just become our everyday existence. I also think the other thing that is probably the most different in terms of our department, specifically, is level of flexibility the students have, especially in the dining program. Where you used to be able to eat three times a day at 8 o’clock in the morning, at noon and 5 o’clock in the evening, now you can eat from 7:15 o’clock in the morning until 1 o’clock in the morning during the week. (There’s) lots of flexibility and lots of different service options. They used to serve the same thing in all the dining centers, now there are thousands of options students can take advantage of.

Q: Why should students live on campus?

A: The proof is in the outcome. The students who have lived on campus collectively through the years have graduated at a higher rate; they have gotten higher GPAs and have just been overall more successful. I think that’s because you have the physical location, you’ve got that opportunity to connect with other people in your classes and (able to) easily access university resources. The combination of all these things really enhances students’ education because they are actually living in an environment that is supportive of that.

Q: What is the new and the big thing for on campus housing right now?

A: Well right now the new and the big thing is how do you develop more flexibility for students in their living environment? We are in the middle of a program where we are changing out all of the student furniture in all the rooms. And for many of them this means going from a fixed furniture where the desk, the bed, and everything is built-in to having this special movable furniture that they can put in 20 different configurations.

So now the big thing in terms of the physical environment is how can students use that to design their room the way they want. In fact they typically change it on average three times a semester so they like to have that kind of flexibility with their space.

Q: Why is Eastern’s on campus environment different from other colleges on campus environment?

A: The difference is that this is an integrated college campus because as you walk down the sidewalk you will walk past a residential building and then an academic building and then you run into another residential building, and it really is part in part of the same physical layout where other campus have their academic areas exclusively in one part of campus and their residential in another part of campus. I think it is a great advantage we have that everything is really entwined together.

Q: What do you hope you can change here at Eastern?

A: Well I am not sure I am looking for change per say, but I am always looking for ways to meet the ever-changing student need. Their interest in more privacy, their interest in a higher level of service and making sure they get a good quality return in their investment because that is what living on campus is; it is an investment in their college career and in their education. I guess what I want to do is make sure that we are in tune with students and making sure we talk to students all the time to incorporate feedback into where we are taking the program so that this program will be a good return on their investment.

Q: Do you have any advice you want to give students?

A: My advice to students is that a university environment offers thousands of opportunities for learning outside the classroom. Do well with your classes, study hard, go to class and be prepared but then outside that classroom engage in the opportunities that make education come alive. Be engaged in student activities, student organizations, take on leadership responsibilities because that opportunity is where relationships are formed that will last you a lifetime. Skills are developed that will enhance your ability to be successful in the world outside of Eastern.

Q: What makes you so friendly and happy with your job?

A: I think I have the best job on campus. I love interacting with students, I am excited to come to work everyday because I feel if we do our jobs well we will make a difference in the lives of students. If we don’t do it well we could just as easily hurt that opportunity for them to be successful. So we work hard to think about helping students and helping them be successful . A lot of times that means helping them find the resources that are available that this campus offers. What makes me happy is seeing students be successful.

As the director of housing and dining, Mark Hudson decides what his department can do to meet the ever changing needs of students on campus. Eric Hiltner/The Daily Eastern News

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