Residential Life and Housing/Food Accommodations

Macalester College believes the learning experience in a community living model is essential to student growth. Students are required to live on-campus for the first two years as part of this commitment to holistic learning; this includes students with disabilities to live others in shared living spaces as an integral part of the Macalester community. Accommodations are considered as part of this residency requirements.

Requests for accommodations are considered on a case by case basis, evaluated by disability and any impacts or functional limitations, the reasonableness of the accommodation, and space availability.

Requesting Housing Accommodations

All students should first review Residential Life Processes and Policies for Housing prior to requesting accommodations.

Spring Housing Selection Accommodations Requests

The timeline for requesting specific housing accommodations for Academic Year 2024-2025 has passed. To ensure we have appropriate time to coordinate all housing placements and we are unable to take additional requests at this time. Students who have missed the deadline should plan to participate in Room Selection. Late requests may still be submitted and students should contact Disability Resources directly or schedule an appointment. Late requests will be reviewed on a cases by case basis once Room Selection has take place there may be limited availability. To contact the Center for Disability Resources with questions: [email protected].

Information about how to request dietary or dining related accommodations/exemptions can be found below including important deadlines for exemption requests.

Important Deadlines

Housing Accommodation Request Process Opens: February 15, 2024
Deadline for Submitting Housing Accommodation Requests: March 6, 2024
Disability Resources Review Housing Accommodation: March 7 – 12, 2024
Students notfied via email of Housing Accommodation Approval: March 13, 2024 (By end of day)

Deadline for Spring Semester 2024

The deadline for Spring 2024 housing accommodations and assistance animals for Spring 2024 has passed. Please contact Disability Resources for more information.

First Year Students Housing Accommodation Requests

The First Year Housing Accommodation Request Process opens May 14, 2024 with review of requests for incoming first year students are including housing accommodations taking place over the summer. The deadline to submit housing accommodation request is June 21, 2024.

Meet with Disability Resources for an intake if you have not done so.
Register with the Center for Disability Resources via the AIM system
Complete the housing accommodation request form.
Provide information from a care provider with information on the need for housing configurations related to disability (e.g., why a single room is required) by the deadline.

Steps for Accommodations

Once your request is submitted

You will be contacted by Disability Resources on receipt of request.
The Disability Resoueces team will meet to consider all accommodation requests after the housing request deadline.
Students will be notified by Disability Resources of Approval. Please be aware this may take several weeks to coordinate all housing configurations. Specfic housing assignments are determined by Residential Life, not the Center for Disability Resources.
For first year students, notification of housing placement will be provided at the same time all students are provided their housing notifications.

Important Things to Note

Students will be considered for housing accommodation based on the following;

A medical/mental health disability that significantly impacts the ability of the student to live in traditional housing configurations.
How the accommodation reduces disability impacts.
Space and other housing configuration considerations: we may not have space for all requests.
Timeliness of request.

Accommodations are considered for the student making the request, not potential roommates or friends.

Students should indicate secondary options in the event first options cannot be granted.

Single Rooms

Single rooms requests via Disability Resources are for instances where a single is medically necessary to reduce the impact of the disability impact. Preference for a single, a specific location, concern about typical collegiate noises, or a roommate concern may not rise to a level of medically necessary and an accommodation via this process.

Specialty/Language Housing

Students applying for language housing accommodations need to apply by first through Specialty Language Housing process/deadlines.

Students should also contact Disability Resources regarding requests for accommodations and inform the speciality/language house of an accommodation need. We will then connect with the specialty area to determine reasonable accommodation options.

Late Requests

What do I do if I didn’t meet the deadline for a request or it’s after Room Draw?

Returning students requesting after the March 6, 2024 deadline can still go through Room Draw. Third and Fourth year students should anticipate locating housing off campus that meets their accommodation needs.

After room draw, we may have no additional space options for housing accommodations. Requests will be evaluated on a first come, first served basis as space that meets accommodation needs are available. We may be unable to honor late requests due to space or administrative limits.

Meal Plan Accommodations

Students looking to request accommodations related dietary restrictions or dining accommodation should schedule an appointment with someone from the Center for Disability Resources to discuss possible accommodations.

Meal Plan and Housing Exemptions

A full meal plan is obligatory for each student who lives in college housing unless the space is designated otherwise. Only exemption requests for medically prescribed diets that cannot be accommodated in Café Mac will be considered. Academic class or employment schedules, finances or vegetarian/vegan/organic diets are not viable reasons for exemption to the meal plan. Food service personnel are amenable to discussing special provisions or substitutions to meet dietary requirements, scheduling conflicts or other individual needs. Therefore, before pursuing an exemption, it is expected that you will have identified why this is an issue, and discussed the possibility of special provisions with Café Mac personnel, before completing the form below.

Should you still wish to pursue a meal plan exemption, you can fill out the Meal Plan and Housing Exemption Request Form. The Housing and Dining Exemption Committee (made up of staff from various departments on campus) will review requests based on the timeline below:

Requests for Spring semester

November 1 – Spring Meal Plan Request can be submitted

December 1 – Spring Meal Plan Request Exemptions due

December 2 – 10 Committee will review exemption requests

December 15 – Students know of approval/deny

Requests for Fall semester

April 1 – Fall and Full Year Meal Plan Request Form can be submitted

June 1 – Meal Plan Request Exemptions due

June 2-30 – Committee will review exemption requests

July 1 – Students known of Approval/deny

***Requests that are received after the deadline will be reviewed on a case by case basis for unexpected/extenuating circumstances.

The Housing and Dining Exemption Committee will review the petition to determine if your meal plan requirement with the college will be waived due to exceptional need, hardship, or extenuating circumstances. If your request is approved, Card Services will end your meal plan access, and your student account will be charged the per day rate for each day you were on the meal plan during the semester you requested to cancel your meal plan plus an additional week. You will be notified in writing of the outcome.

Housing Contract Exemptions

Campus living is an integral part of the total educational experience at Macalester. Residential living provides students with a safe, convenient place to live and learn with a nutritious, reasonably priced meal program. By living on campus, students develop interpersonal skills and intercultural understanding in an atmosphere of mutual support for academic, cultural, and intellectual pursuits. Because of the educational importance of the residence life experience, Macalester College requires all first and second-year students to live on campus. A previous boarding school experience, such as the United World College, will not be considered an exception to the two-year (four consecutive semesters) residency requirement.

The two-year housing requirement will be waived for students who are: married and living with their spouse, a custodial parent, or at least 22 years old when accepted to Macalester. Students in these circumstances should apply for release from the housing requirement stating which exception applies to them.
Upperclass students who select housing and sign room and board contracts for the following academic year will not be released from housing unless they take a leave of absence or study abroad for the fall semester. Contracts will terminate at the end of the fall semester for students accepted to spring study abroad programs.
A student cannot transfer a housing contract to another student. At times when Residential Life has a housing waitlist for upperclass students, consideration of the petition will include whether or not a student from the housing waitlist can fill the space. If you are released from your housing contract, your vacancy will be filled by Residential Life, therefore, you should notify your roommates(s) of your intentions.
Release from housing contract does not mean a release from the meal plan. Exemption from the meal plan is a separate process. Should you still wish to pursue a meal plan exemption, you can fill out the Meal Plan and Housing Exemption Request Form. The Housing and Dining Exemption Committee (made up of staff from various departments on campus) will review requests as they are received.

Guidelines and Procedures for Petition

Is your request related to a disability? Please complete the Meal Plan and Housing Exemption Request Form. Once you have completed the request form please schedule a meeting with Disability Resourcs. Whether you have a physical, psychological, or cognitive disability, you must provide documentation that verifies your disability to Disability Resources who are responsible for coordinating services for students with disabilities. Guidelines for this documentation can be found on the Disability Resources website.

In general, documentation must be current and written by someone who has the credentials, expertise, and experience with the specific disability. Following evaluation of the documentation you will be notified by Disability Resources about the status of your accommodation request.

Is your request non-disability and not medical or psychologically related? If you wish to petition to be released from your housing contract or from the two-year residency requirement for reasons other than medical or psychological, you must submit a typewritten email request to [email protected]. Please include the following in your written request: your name, your current housing assignment, phone, and email address. Include the following three components in your petition. Only a complete petition will be reviewed.

Your specific needs that cannot nor have not been met in a residence hall and/or how residential living poses a hardship for you. Keep in mind that living on campus presents lifestyle and financial obstacles for everyone (and their families) who attends Macalester College. It is your responsibility to prove the uniqueness of your situation and the difference between your current circumstances and those of the past that enabled you to live on campus.
How you have tried to meet your needs and/or resolve your hardship within the residence life system and/or the Macalester community. Have you considered other room options within the residence halls?
Your alternative plans for residency and how these plans will meet your needs and/or alleviate hardship.

The Residential Life staff will review the petition to determine if your contractual obligation with the college will be waived due to exceptional need, hardship, or extenuating circumstances. If your request is approved, Residential Life will assign the space to another student; therefore you should notify your roommate(s) of your request to cancel your contract. If a housing exemption is approved, your student account will remain the same.

Residential Life will no longer be prorating refunds as of September 28th, 2023, to students’ housing and dining contract if they are approved for a exemption. What does this mean? The bill that a student receives for the semester will stay the same for housing and dining if they decide to petition to live off-campus. The Office of Residential Life reserves the right to uphold or waive all housing contracts. You will be notified in writing of the outcome.

Please email Residential Life at [email protected] if you’d like to petition for a Housing Contract Exemption. Once we receive your outreach, we will be sure to communicate with you regarding your request.

Service and Emotional Support/Assistance Animals

Requests for Service and ESA/Assistance Animals should be completed by accommodated housing timelines to ensure appropriate space configurations can be determined. Late requests will be considered individually.

General Steps

Student provides information that clearly identifies the need for the animal and any assistance the animal provides (if not readily apparent) by above deadlines.

Ensure animal vaccination records are up to date and records provided to the Disability Resources Office prior to animal arrival.

Agree to the animal management policy provided by Disability Resources staff prior to animal arrival.

Student has discussed any questions or concerns with Disability Resources staff in advance of animal arrival.

Please contact Disability Resources to discuss specifics regarding Service and Assistance animals on campus: [email protected].

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