As enrollment at the University of Mississippi continues to skyrocket, so does the need for on-campus housing. But with the rising cost of construction and urgent demand for residential facilities to be built in a timely manner, officials were tasked with thinking outside the box.
In the fall of 2024, Ole Miss welcomed just under 6,000 new students, breaking a state record in the process. A culmination of success in athletics, widespread branding at the national level, and other factors have drawn students from across the map to Oxford, posing residential concerns. The enrollment surge prompted university officials to acquire off-campus housing for students who could not get a dorm on campus.
Now, to give future freshmen living options closer to their classrooms, Ole Miss has partnered with real estate company Greystar to produce around 2,700 on-campus beds for students that are expected to be available by 2027. The Board of Trustees of the Institutions of Higher Learning approved the public-private partnership on Monday.
Unlike the other dorms on campus, the new ones will be modular, or mostly factory-built. The units will be constructed in partnership with Modern Living Solutions, a Greystar-operated business that specializes in modular housing. Sections of the incoming buildings will be manufactured in Modern Living Solutions’ factory in Knox, Penn., shipped to the Ole Miss campus, and then assembled on site.
The collaboration with Greystar will allow the university to build new facilities without enduring the full financial burden, all while aiming to keep future costs down for prospective pupils.
Though this method of dorm building is unconventional in the area, and these plans represent the largest of their kind in Mississippi, Ole Miss is not the first university in the state to utilize modular housing for students. Back in 2014, Mississippi Valley State housed students in temporary modular residences while one of its dorms was being renovated.
“At the heart of our mission lies our unwavering commitment to giving students the best experience possible, which is why this project is vital to addressing one of the most important aspects of the student experience: housing,” Ole Miss Chancellor Glenn Boyce said.
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“This transformative partnership with Greystar will provide a unique and exceptionally efficient approach to expanding housing options on campus,” Boyce continued. “I’m grateful to the Mississippi Legislature, statewide elected officials, the IHL board of trustees, and all involved in this intentional and thoughtful planning that has moved this project forward for the benefit of our students.”
The new housing communities will be built where Kincannon Hall used to stand before being demolished in 2023, and on West Row across from the University of Mississippi School of Law. The Kincannon site will hold around 1,200 beds, with parking supported by a new parking garage already under construction. The West Row site will add 1,500 beds and feature a dining facility and a new parking garage with approximately 1,500 spaces. Suites and semi-suites will be available.
In partnership with Ole Miss leaders and industry experts, Greystar will lead a team that includes Mississippi-based businesses to design, build, finance, operate, and maintain the new student housing communities. Officials report that more than 70% of the on-site construction work will be available to local and regional subcontractors, granting more employment opportunities to Mississippians.
