Bay Area college opens residence hall for nearly 300 students

ATHERTON — In the school’s first new building project in nearly half a century, Menlo College has opened a new residence hall for about 300 students struggling to find affordable housing in one of the nation’s most expensive areas.

The John Arrillaga Residence Hall — named after the Silicon Valley real estate titan who died earlier this year — will now be home for hundreds of bachelor’s degree-seeking students on the college’s leafy green, residential campus.

The dorm features double-occupancy rooms spread over three floors and includes lounges, study spaces, group collaboration rooms, and other entertainment features like a space for e-gaming, films and socializing.

“With this new residence hall, we are able to provide a wider safety net for those at-risk of not completing their college degree,” Menlo College President Steven Weiner said in a press release. “Menlo College is squarely focused on ensuring that each of our students persists to graduation and achieves the positive career and life trajectory that comes with a college degree, and this residence hall is a welcome addition to the demonstration of that commitment.”

The college’s commitment to building a new residence hall for its students comes as the Bay Area becomes ever more unaffordable for low-income people. The new hall allows the college to provide cost-effective housing for students, which includes 99% who receive financial aid, 29% who are Pell Grant recipients and 27% who are first-generation college students.

Menlo College is among the most diverse colleges in America, ranking as the 17th most diverse according to Niche.com, the school said. As a majority-minority institution, with only 17% of students identifying as white, the college was also recently designated as both a Hispanic Serving Institution and an Asian American, Native American, and Pacific Islander Serving Institution, placing it among only 1% of all colleges and universities that simultaneously warrant both designations.

“Some of our students face significant barriers to persisting through college,” said Vice President of Student Success and Strategic Planning Angela Schmiede. “Adding additional housing on campus can take away one aspect of worry for students who may also face food insecurity or other financial hardships.”

While the project is an effort for the university to house its students, it’s also a way for the school to retain students who would otherwise drop out without support.

“We know that once students make the decision to leave college, even if they intend to re-enroll and identify strongly as alumni, they often do not return,” Schmiede said. “Temporary housing when emergency situations arise, or housing for all four years of enrollment, are key elements toward ensuring that more students persist to graduation.”

Menlo College was established in 1927 and is a small, private, on-profit, four-year college in the heart of Silicon Valley.