Located on the eastern end of the Memorial University of Newfoundland's St. John's campus, Paton College and nearby Burton's Pond Apartments are residences operated by the university's department of Housing, Food and Conference Services. Paton College offers traditional dormitory style housing while Burton's Pond is apartment style housing. Paton College and Burton's Pond provides accommodations for students who are attending either Memorial University, the Marine Institute, or the College of the North Atlantic (Prince Phillip Drive Campus).
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Construction of Paton College began in 1962, with most of the nine residences being completed by 1968.[1] The college is named after John Lewis Paton, who was the first President of Memorial University College from 1926-1933.[1] The nine original Houses of Paton College were named in honor of various benefactors of Memorial University College and Memorial University, in particular Vere Harmsworth, 3rd Viscount Rothermere and Sir Eric Vanisttart Bowater. Coughlan College, a single dormitory building originally operated as one of four denominational residences, became a part of Paton College in the mid-1990s. A modified Paton family crest was bestowed upon the College and serves as its official crest to this day.
Burton's Pond was built in the mid-1970s and is named after the pond adjacent to the apartments, which existed before the university was built. The five Courts and Corte Real (the services building) are named after notable early explorers of North America, all of whom have connections to Newfoundland; Jacques Cartier, Giovanni Caboto, Humphrey Gilbert, John Guy, George Calvert (1st Baron Baltimore), and Gaspar Corte-Real.
The ten Paton College dormitories are referred to as the "Houses". They include:
Each residence accommodates approximately 100 students. Prior to 1992, all the Paton College residences were single sex. In 2005, the sole remaining male house (Doyle) was turned co-ed. In 2008, Squires House converted from an all-female house to coed. This left Blackall House the only remaining all-female house until January 2010, when it finished its renovations and was converted into a co-ed house.
Coughlan House is the only residence that resides across the road from the other residences. Historically, it was not a part of Paton College; it was grouped with a separate collection of colleges with Feild and Spencer. However, currently it stands as a tenth house on par with the original nine. The residents often cheer on their house by proclaiming "ATR" which stands for Across the Road. They are also the only residence aside from Rothermere House, Bowater House and the Burton's Pond Courts without access to the tunnel system (aka MUNnels).
Each dormitory consists of both double and single occupancy bedrooms, and shared bathroom facilities on each floor. Each residence has a TV room, laundry room, study room, computer room, lobby, and a trunk room for storage. Meals are provided at the main dining hall; the Raymond Gushue Hall.
All residents of Paton College must purchase a meal plan. Each student can choose from either a 10, 14, or 19 meal plan.
Built in the mid-1970s, the Burton's Pond apartments consist of four courts, each housing 125 students in four bedroom apartments, and one family court (Baltimore). A lounge, study room, computer lab, laundry room, and mail room is located in Corte Real.
The five Burton's Pond Courts are:
The growth of Memorial University over the past decade has resulted in far more applications for on campus accommodations than the university can provide. In 2007, the government of Newfoundland and Labrador provided funding for a new residential complex, set to open in 2010. The new complex will provide accommodations for approximately 300 residents and will be located on the south-east end of the St. John's campus, adjacent to Paton College and Burton's Pond. Excavation of the site for the new building began in June, 2008. Delays in construction have resulted in the opening of the new "Super Res" to be delayed to September 2012.
The Residence Life Office at Memorial University is a unit within the department of Housing, Food and Conference Services. As part of the university's division of Student Affairs and Services, the Residence Life Office provides guidance, support, and programming to assist students in their transition from life at home to life at school and their personal and social development. The Residence Life Office at Memorial is staffed by a number of full-time professionals, including the Manager of Residence Life, the Supervisor of Residence Life, and two Residence Life Officers, who live on campus.
Residence Life professionals supervise a large team of part-time and student residence life staff. Each residence has one Residence Coordinator, who is the university's part-time, live-in supervisor for their residence. The RC is responsible for identifying and addressing resident needs and issues, and for supervising the student staff (RAs and AA), as well as performing various administrative duties such as room assignments and discipline. Resident concerns or issues that cannot be addressed by the student staff are referred to the Residence Coordinator.
Each of the Paton College dormitories also has four RAs, or Resident Assistant, who live on each floor of the House. The RAs are responsible for addressing the needs and concerns of the residents and for ensuring that the residents abide by the rules and regulations.
Each residence also has an Academic Assistant (AA) who is responsible for providing academic support for the residents. The AA promotes positive academic behavior through direct statement and example, and are responsible for supervising the student tutors (who are provided free of charge to the residents). The AA also provides academic guidance and programming throughout each semester. The Academic Assistant is an excellent source of knowledge about Memorial University's academic programs, regulations, and resources available on campus.
Each residence at Memorial University of Newfoundland is recognized as a student society by the university administration and undergraduate students' union (MUNSU). At the end of each winter semester, the residents elected a residence society executive for the following academic year (September - April). The residence society executive consists of a president, vice-president, treasurer, and social chair. The executive promote residence spirit by organizing various residence events and leading their residence in campus competitions, including the Fall Orientation, Intramural sports, and Winter Carnival. The residence society executive are also the representatives of their society when meeting with the university administration and the students' union.
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