Incoming students set on living in Respect and Excellence halls will have to make other plans.
The Department of Residential Life put a notice on [the ROAR site](https://roar.missouri.edu/Login.aspx) that the two halls are temporarily unavailable for incoming students. ROAR opens for admitted students at 4 p.m. April 11.
The decision comes in the wake of declining enrollment and a $32 million budget shortfall. University officials are expecting a decrease of about 1,500 students. Interim Chancellor Hank Foley [announced](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/2016/3/9/mu-experience-32-million-budget-loss-enrollment-de/) a 5 percent budget cut for all departments as well as a hiring freeze to save money. In March, [ResLife announced they would not need Laws and Lathrop halls to house incoming freshmen.](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/2016/3/15/laws-and-lathrop-halls-close-201617-following-enro/)
Laws Hall is going to be demolished in 2017, but Lathrop Hall could reopen before its scheduled demolition. Similarly, ResLife might open up spaces in Respect and Excellence if demand increases. Discovery and Responsibility, the other two buildings in the complex, will remain available.
“This is an effort to ensure we are using our halls in the most efficient manner, keeping our costs as low as possible so we can provide our students with the best possible living environments at an affordable cost,” the notice read.
The staff of the two buildings was told about the changes in a meeting Friday afternoon.
Director of Residential Life Frankie Minor told The Maneater in March that the staff hired for Laws and Lathrop would maintain similar positions. This time around, there is no such guarantee, according to an incoming staff member in that meeting.
Respect and Excellence, both suite-style halls, house a combined 315 students. A double room in both halls costs $7,640.
_Edited by Nancy Coleman | ncoleman@themaneater.com_