Students are concerned about the strains on Montclair State University’s resources as the Class of 2028 sets a new school record of 4,548 incoming students.
The Class of 2028 is the fourth consecutive class to break this record, according to a press release on the university’s website. As a result, the total enrollment of the student body is 23,546 students.
A main concern many students have is the availability of parking spaces on campus. According to Elyse Fernandez, director of media relations and content strategy at Montclair State, there are 6,200 parking spaces available on campus, as well as the shuttle service. However, students feel that as class sizes grow, the struggle to find parking will worsen.
Maria Salazar, a senior majoring in film and television, shared her experience as a commuter.
“I come early in the morning and the parking is really bad,” Salazar said. “It just feels so busy.”
Natalie Brangaccio, another senior in the film and television program, shared similar sentiments.
“I can definitely tell there is a big difference in the congestion on campus,” Brangaccio said. “I’ve never seen it like this before.”
Maria Salazar (left) and Natalie Brangaccio (right), both senior film and television majors. Lauren Rivera | The Montclarion Photo credit: Lauren Rivera
Upperclassmen aren’t the only students feeling the effects of the record enrollment.
Jaelin Arceo, a freshman majoring in English, is a commuter, who didn’t realize until the first day of classes how limited parking spaces can really be.
“I left the campus for twenty minutes to get food,” Arceo said. “I came back and there was literally no parking. Where am I supposed to park?”
Jaelin Arceo, a freshman majoring in English. Lauren Rivera | The Montclarion Photo credit: Lauren Rivera
With the incoming class size being as large as it is, Brangaccio feels that administration should be doing more to fix this issue.
“As long as they keep up the resources to align with the number of students we have, then it shouldn’t be a problem,” Barngaccio said. “But I feel like they aren’t. If they are going to take in more people, we need more parking; we need more places to get food so the wait isn’t so long all the time; we just need more resources.”
In order to lessen the parking congestion, Fernandez expressed the use of the shuttle services.
“We are encouraging students, especially those housed on the Bloomfield campus, to utilize the provided shuttle service to help reduce the need for on-campus parking,” Fernandez said.
Additionally, Montclair State is reviewing parking allocation and capacity to ensure that the needs of commuting students and faculty are met. “[Montclair State] is committed to ensuring a smooth and supportive experience for the entire student body,” Fernandez said.
