Special-Interest Houses

MAFia residents meet in the common room to discuss the album of the week.

Special Interest Houses are living-learning communities that offer groups of students the opportunity to explore and support their shared interests, identities, and affiliations in a dedicated residential space.  Special Interest Houses (SIH) may be resident-centered or group-centered.  A resident-centered house focuses on an identity or topic of interest shared by the students that is not an extension of an existing student organization or larger campus program.   In a group-centered house, the students focus their activities on the goals of the existing student organization or campus program to which the house is connected.   In both types of house, the residents use their living space to advance their established group goals and add value to the campus community.

Each Special Interest House must have a minimum of one House President that represents the group to Residence Life and their house advisors.   The House President is responsible for leading the efforts of the house members in meeting the group’s specific goals and in fulfilling general SIH requirements.  Each member of the SIH is expected to be actively engaged in using the group’s dedicated living space in a manner that enhances their residential student experience.  

Every Special Interest House is advised by at least one faculty member or administrator. These faculty/staff sponsors offer advice and guidance in the development of formal programs and informal opportunities to meet the group’s goals.  In addition, Residence Life staff assist with the administrative aspects of managing a living group environment and implementing the house learning objectives.  Houses receive a program budget from the Office of Residence Life to support house initiatives.  

Special Interest Houses status is approved on a yearly basis.  The application for NEW SIH groups is available in the Residence Life group in OurCampus.   Existing SIH groups that wish to return for the following year must submit a renewal application through OurCampus.  Renewal is based on progress in meeting the group’s goals, satisfying general SIH program expectations, and meeting administrative requirements, which includes the ability to continuously meet occupancy.   Details about the renewal application process will be communicated directly to current SIH.

Requirements & Expectations

Special Interest House expectations and requirements include:

SPRING SEMESTER [prior to living in SIH]

  • Submit a house roster of eligible students that fills all spaces in the house and includes alternates, as specified by Residence Life.
  • Encourage qualified group members to apply for the House RA position.
  • As a group, and in consultation with faculty/staff advisor, establish operational plan to meet house goals. 
  • House president holds introductory meeting with Residence Life staff member to review operational plan and general SIH expectations.

FALL/SPRING SEMESTERS [while living in SIH]

  • House must sponsor at least one event per month in support of group’s theme or mission.
  • Hold at least one meeting per month of the membership.
  • House President meets at least once per month with the Residence Life staff member who oversees the Special Interest House program.
  • House submits two self-evaluations per year:  one at mid-year and one at the end of the year.

Application Information for 2025-2026

For 2025-2026, Special Interest Houses may be assigned to specific floors or wings in the following locations: 421 Hamilton St., Farber Hall, Keefe Hall, Ramer Hall, Rubin Hall.

Special Interest Houses may be single-gender, mixed gender, or gender-inclusive.  The standard occupancy and room configurations vary between Special Interest Houses.  Groups must fill all spaces and may not alter the occupancy of any student rooms.  The minimum group size for a Special interest House is 6.  The maximum group size is 20.  

If approved, the Special Interest House group will be offered a specific location that corresponds to the type of  housing specified in the application.  There are many options for placement within the residence hall inventory and the intent of the SIH application process is to offer every qualified group the opportunity to become a Special Interest House.  Groups that list multiple facility types and a wider group occupancy range are more likely to be approved based on the total number of qualified applications received.

The application for NEW Special Interest Houses is in the Residence Life OurCampus portal (to see the application, you must first JOIN the portal). The application opens in January and are due February 15th.  The house leader submits one application on behalf of the group.

Members of the Residence Life staff are available for consultation and assistance through the application process.

Current Special Interest Houses 2024-2025

Music Appreciation Floor

The Music Appreciation Floor (is awesome), or MAFia for short, is a club and special interest housing option located on the third floor of Ramer Hall. Whether you are a world class musician, enjoyed playing the recorder in 3rd grade, or just enjoy listening to music, MAFia will support your music appreciating endeavors.  For more information on who we are or how to get involved, contact us on our OurCampus or follow us on instagram at @mafia_lafayette.

TRAP (Tabletop and Roleplaying Appreciation Programs)

Located in Keefe Hall, this house provides a supportive environment for students to learn new games and play old ones, taking advantage of all of the benefits that tabletop games provide. House goals include helping members to become more innovative thinkers and problem solvers who are more confident, creative, and social. The TRAP Floor is a substance-free floor.

Past Special Interest Houses

America Through the Decades
Brothers of Lafayette
Cinema in Society
Cooking Enthusiasts (Café)
Creating Harmony and Necessary Cultural Equality CHANCE)
Dry Surfers
El Mundo
French House
From our Neighborhood to Yours
German House
Haven
Heritage of Latin America (HOLA)
Japanese Interest Floor (JIF)
Justice, Equality, Ecology
Koinonia
Lafayette Communications Union
Lafayette Organization of Science and Technology (LOST)
M.E.S.H. (Mathematics, Engineering, and Sciences House)
Mind, Body, Spirit
Students for Social Justice
Technology
TREEhouse
The Village
Volunteer Floor