College Towns: A Uniquely American
Phenomenon
The United States contains hundreds of college towns. Around
the world, most universities exist in large cities and urban
centers. In Europe, cities were built first, and then universities
emerged; in the United States, most colleges and universities
were founded by different religious institutions or by states
before significant urban development took place. More higher
education institutions exist in the United States per capita
than in any other country in the world.
As the nation expanded, colleges and universities spread
throughout the new territory, and institutions frequently
selected locations based on funding support. A bidding war
secured the University of Missouri’s location in Columbia with
the county’s offer of $82,000 in cash and $35,000 in land to
the state. The University of Kansas is in Lawrence because
town leaders bribed state legislators with $4 per vote.
The Impact of Colleges on Communities
Economist Richard Florida wrote about the importance of the
high quality of life and open support for creative individuals
often found in college towns. In addition to the creative class
choosing to live in college towns, retirement housing and senior
communities popping up near colleges and universities allow
older generations to share in opportunities for arts appreciation and lifelong learning. As the center of a creative economy,
universities attract technology companies and university-based
research that translates into local economic opportunities and
Yet negative issues prevail in college towns as well, including
alcohol use among students, high-profile incidents such as big
parties with multiple arrests or citations, trash accumulation, a
lack of lawn maintenance, noise issues, and over-occupancy of
homes in single-family neighborhoods. Public safety services
are often provided to communities, such as campus police and
fire services, but financial support varies from campus to campus. Further, in tight fiscal times, local host communities are
seeking ways to increase revenue from tax-exempt institutions,
whether it is in the form of direct payments to the respective
communities or taxes on residence hall rooms or students.
Student Affairs Builds Bridges
to the Community
Issues related to adult learners and off-campus and commuter
students are becoming more specialized and are receiving more
resources from student affairs divisions than in previous years.
“It’s the realization that colleges and universities are taking a more active approach in addressing their off-campus
experience. Ten to fifteen years ago, institutions had more
of a hands-off approach,” says Vaughn Clay, director of the
Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services at Monmouth
University in New Jersey. “Institutions today are seeing not
only the responsibility, but also the value, of trying to create
strong partnerships with their communities. Institutions are
beginning to understand their multiple stakeholders, not just
students and upset neighborhood residents, and they are making an ongoing effort to communicate effectively.”
“Institutions today are seeing not only the responsibility, but also the
value, of trying to create strong partnerships with their communities.”
business incubators, as evidenced by North Carolina’s Research
Triangle. Allan Marshall, director of community development
for the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce, the Texas community in which Baylor University is based, wrote in a local
newspaper editorial: “Across our nation, successful town–gown
relationships shape and elevate communities.”
University outreach, scholarship, and community service
have positive effects on college towns as well. Texas State
University in San Marcos coordinates the “Pack It Up and
Pass It On” program, through which donations are collected
from students leaving town at the end of the academic year.
Local residents then select needed household items, books,
and clothing using vouchers distributed by local community
service agencies. In 2008, some 550 individuals attended the
event, which benefitted 1,000 local families. “This is the only
connection some have with college students, other than busy
traffic and noisy parties,” said Kim Porterfield, director of
community relations at Texas State, who presented this program at the 2008 Best Practices in Building University/City
Relations Conference.
Reduce, reuse, and recycle programs, additional examples of
community service initiatives, have been implemented at many
universities, including The George Washington University,
Denison University, Suffolk University, University of Michigan,
University of Vermont, and California State University-Fresno.
On a traditional residential college campus, commuter
issues, such as child care and transportation, are typically not
priorities for student affairs compared to issues related to the
on-campus student. Patricia Inman and Ernest Pascarella recommended in a 1998 article in The Journal of College Student
Development that opportunities be provided for commuter
students to accommodate their schedules and lifestyles. Older
students need different services than traditional-age college
students, and recommendations have been made that the student affairs profession consider recruiting staff to address the
needs of older college students.
Beyond the age and life-experience issues, adult learners
who live off campus present different challenges for student
affairs professionals. Many campuses have created offices
devoted to off-campus life to support student persistence and
success. Off-campus life offices often produce and distribute
many communications for commuting students, including
newsletters and listservs.
Two recurring themes are worth noting in working with off-campus students: Annual turnover means different students
need to be taught to be good neighbors each year. Turnover
among community leaders and other stakeholders, such as
community outreach police officers, means residents holding
these positions often have learning curves as well. While the
