Sacramento State students have mixed feelings after the announcement of a new campus live-in requirement for first-time freshmen starting in fall 2026.
President Luke Wood announced on Aug. 21 that freshmen will be required to live on campus for two academic years. Many students have reacted negatively to the new policy due to financial cost and a shortage of on-campus housing.
RELATED: New live-in requirement for freshman adds to campus housing pressure
Drew Harris, a sophomore graduate history major and a chairman of the Union WELL Inc. board of directors, said he objects to the policy because it is not accessible to low-income freshmen.
Although Sac State says the policy aims for student success, academic achievement and campus engagement, Harris said he worries it will only cause stress for newly enrolled students. He said students may not be able to afford tuition costs with these housing rules in place.
“I think it’s a poorly thought out idea, especially if they can’t accommodate all incoming freshmen,” Harris said. “It’s going to alienate students if they’re forced to live on campus, and students aren’t going to be able to afford to come to Sac State.”
Housing options for freshmen on campus consists of six different halls that make up North Village housing on campus. North Village can only house up to 2,100 students, and Hornet Commons can accommodate up to 1,100 students. As construction continues with the addition of Mt. Whitney Hall, this student-living addition is set to house 335 students.
Student housing complex Hornet Place began construction on Sept. 19 and will house 352 students adjacent to Hornet Commons. It is expected to open at the beginning of fall 2027.
Development of student housing options downtown are also planned, which will convert three state buildings to house at least 1,000 students as a part of California’s Affordable Housing Development order. The housing is primarily intended for students who would be a part of the new School of American Democracy, among other mixed uses, namely those who intend on doing work in the Capitol and its programs. However, few details are currently available regarding the development, and no official opening date is set as of publication.
Junior psychology major Emily Compton questioned how Sac State will be able to accommodate the amount of freshmen coming to live on campus and if this policy will negatively impact upperclassmen already living in dorms.
“They have very limited housing now,” Compton said. “How are they gonna accommodate the students and upperclassmen?”
Sac State has reported record-breaking enrollment numbers. There are 31,274 students currently enrolled for fall 2025, with 5,433 being first-time freshmen.
Vtong Lam, a transfer student and junior political science major, shared his concerns for how crowded the dorms will become for every new batch of freshmen per semester.
“It’s two years worth of students, like freshmen and then sophomores,” Lam said.”So that’s a lot of students because every semester there are more students coming in, and I don’t think there will be enough housing for everyone.”
RELATED: Rising costs, rising concerns: navigating price hikes and tariffs
Sophomore psychology major Kendall Demer said that freshmen shouldn’t be required to live on campus. However, she said she does encourage students to try it out for the benefits she experienced living in dorms.
“I don’t live [near Sac State] so housing is nice, and I do appreciate it, but I also think housing isn’t for everybody,” Demer said. ”Not everyone can live in dorms, considering the small space, and you’re with a random person half the time. So, I just say it should not be mandatory but highly encouraged.”
Wood said in his fall address on Aug. 21 that the new live-in requirement aims to support student success. He said the goal is to ensure freshmen have access to academic support and community engagement on campus.
Senior business major and transfer student Brandon Pham said that transfer students who do not live on campus find it hard to connect with the community at Sac State.
“Students like me who transferred here don’t really know anything about the campus, so it’s kind of hard for us to go to events and stuff we don’t know about,” Pham said.
Senior business finance major Sebastian Babin said that he believes incoming freshmen will be deterred from going straight to Sac State as a four-year college and may want to start at a community college to avoid on-campus housing finances.
“Campus is very expensive so forcing students to pay more is not okay,” Babin said. “I think a lot of people who might be incoming freshmen might end up just going to community college instead of straight here, so that’s really unfortunate.”
