After students finish moving into their new on-campus homes, many of these new residents often give a heartfelt farewell to their families. But for some families, move-in day was only the beginning of their lives on campus.
Nick Varner is the community director of Owen Hall and Van Hoosen Apartments, and lives in Owen Hall with his wife and six-month-old son, Charlie.
Varner said he loves the MSU campus’ energetic environment, which offers his son benefits he couldn’t get living in a more traditional home.
These benefits include being able to go on walks around the neighborhood and interact with the people who live and work there, Varner said.
Residents and residence hall staff love seeing Charlie, having watched him grow since the first time he came home, Varner said.
“It’s almost like he has an extended family at MSU,” Varner said.
Dave Koch is an assistant community director at Butterfield Hall, and lives on campus with his wife and 3-year-old son, Eddie, who is often more recognizable to residents than his dad.
“Sometimes people know Eddie’s name and not mine,” Koch said. “I’ll be carrying him and people will yell ‘Eddie!’, and I’ll just be standing on the side. Honestly, I do not mind that at all.”
Similar to Varner, Koch said he enjoys the unique entertainment value campus offers his son.
Eddie enjoys exploring campus, but some of his favorite spots aren’t quite what you’d expect, Koch said. “As mundane as it might seem to an adult, a stairwell can be a very exciting place for a 3-year-old boy.”
The size and diversity of campus gives the kids plenty of space to explore.
“Going to the different dining halls, going to the library here on campus, he (Charlie) is seeing staff and all kinds of different things,” Varner said.
However, living at the workplace is not without its challenges.
Separating his work and home lives is one of the harder parts of working and living on campus, Koch said.
Regarding these challenges, he said, “The main one is the home/work life balance.”
Varner said it can be difficult balancing caring for his son and responding to emergencies in the residence halls during his on-call shifts.
Varner’s son is exposed to the day-to-day lives of much older people.
But the age gap between the two is great enough that there isn’t much cause for alarm, Varner said. Were Charlie old enough to understand what drinking is, that might not be the case.
MSU police officers are a welcome fixture in Varner’s neck of campus.
“It’s nice to be able to raise a child and have secure housing,” Varner said.
In spite of some of the challenges their families face, both men said they are happy to be living on campus with their kids, because the experience of living on campus is unlike anywhere else.
