Binghamton University officially began its Thanksgiving break last Wednesday, and while most students headed home for the holiday, some remained in the area.

Those who choose to stay on campus live in break housing, or housing that is designated to stay open during holidays. This usually includes athletes, international students and students who live far away from school. The buildings that remain open are Delaware, Mohawk and Windham Halls, as well as the apartment communities of Hillside and Susquehanna. The cost of staying in a dorm with break housing is about $300-400 per semester more than staying in a regular dorm.

Stephanie Tsalwa, a junior majoring in biomedical engineering and a resident assistant (RA) in Delaware, said RAs in break housing take turns staying at school for breaks, and work out among themselves which breaks they stay for. She said it is sometimes difficult to live on campus when the University is closed because with most of the students gone, almost everything shuts down.

“Many dining halls are closed which means you have to cook and everyone is trying to use the kitchen so often you resort to ordering food,” Tsalwa said. “Then on official breaks the buses don’t run and almost everything is closed so you’re basically stranded in your building unless you have a car.”

The administration must make sure that students staying in break housing have access to food while the University is closed. According to John Enright, the director of resident dining, Sodexo decides which dining halls will remain open based on information from residential life.

On Thanksgiving Day, College-in-the-Woods, Mountainview and Newing communities hosted a combined Thanksgiving dinner for break residents in the Mohawk Hall Great Room. After the holiday, Sodexo reopened the Hinman Café for limited hours for the remainder of the break. According to Enright, Hinman café was chosen over the other three dining halls because of its central campus location and proximity to apartment communities.

According to Tsalwa, staying at the University during the break is relaxing and a time to bond with the other residents who stay on-campus.

“Campus becomes empty and peaceful, and has this calmness about it,” Tsalwa said. “We sometimes have dinners and teach people who don’t know about the holiday about it. In a way, you build community and become a cute family during the break.”