NYU Plans to House Local Senior Citizens with Students

In response to soaring housing costs, New York University is rolling out a pilot program in the fall that would let students live in the spare bedrooms of local senior citizens. “We are extremely enthusiastic about the program,” said Ellen Schall, chair of NYU’s Affordability Steering Committee. “The cost of housing is a significant challenge for many students.” Students who opt in to the “home stay” program would slice their $14,000-per-year housing bill in half. The initial program will consist of 10 mature juniors, seniors or grad students. Under the plan, cash-strapped students will get a break on rent, and seniors will get extra cash. NYU will partner with University Settlement, a Lower East Side nonprofit that provides social services to low-income seniors.

A similar housing program has been successful in Chicago. In that program, up to 10 students from DePaul University, Loyola University Chicago, the University of Illinois at Chicago and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago are provided free private bedrooms in a senior facility in exchange for 20 hours a week doing light housekeeping, grocery shopping and giving computer lessons. Tracy Montes, an art-history major at The Art Institute, has a blast with her senior roomies. “I organize field trips to museums, and I’ll read poetry to them,” Montes, 25, said. “When I was a student in Seattle with normal roommates, it was a stressful time. I was in school full time and working four jobs to pay the rent. Now I have time to focus on my studies and art projects.”

Source/more: New York Post

David Wingate is an elder law attorney at the Elder Law Office of David Wingate, LLC. The elder law office services clients with powers of attorneys, living wills, Wills, Trusts, Medicaid and asset protection. The Elder Law office has locations in Frederick and Montgomery Counties, Maryland.