Wisconsin students pay $500 rent and volunteer with older residents
The programme is designed for students who genuinely want to engage with older residents rather than simply save money. (Picture credit: Marquette) Volunteering for low
The programme is designed for students who genuinely want to engage with older residents rather than simply save money. (Picture credit: Marquette) Volunteering for low rent A growing trend Shared living helps reduce loneliness among both students and older adults. (Picture: Catholic Herald) Beating loneliness together Building genuine bonds Indian student finds family For 23-year-old Indian student Shojin Samson, moving to the United States did not mean living in a student hostel or sharing an apartment. Instead, he found himself surrounded by hundreds of older neighbours, a decision that helped him save on rent while finding the family connection he had long missed.When most students move to university, they look for housemates their own age. But Some students in the United States are doing the opposite. Instead of noisy student flats and late-night parties, some college students are ending their evenings in quiet retirement communities. In return for affordable rent, they volunteer a few hours each week and build friendships with older residents.For students, the arrangement provides a safe place to live, lower living costs and a sense of community. For older residents, it brings regular company, fresh energy and meaningful interactions. Programmes like these are slowly expanding in the United States as organisations look for ways to address both housing affordability and loneliness.One such student is 25-year-old Daija Holliday, who moved from North Carolina to attend Marquette University in Milwaukee. Instead of renting a regular apartment, she chose to live at St Camillus Life Plan Community, a retirement community with more than 600 older residents.Holliday says she grew up in her grandparents' home, so living among older adults felt natural to her. She believes the experience has given her much more than an affordable place to stay. "It's my family away from home.
I always feel like they have my back," she says, as quoted by Market Watch.Holliday pays about $500 a month for an independent apartment at St Camillus. According to the programme, that is around one-third of the local market rent for a one-bedroom apartment. In return, she volunteers for eight hours every week while studying counselling psychology at Marquette University.Her volunteer work includes sharing coffee and newspapers with residents, helping them with errands, leading Saturday morning fitness classes and organising game nights.The programme offers a different lifestyle from a traditional student residence, where evenings are often busy with social events.According to her, the arrangement works well for her, although it may not suit everyone. "By 7.30 or 8, things get pretty quiet here. If you're looking for more activity at night, this is not for you," Holliday said.According to Sheri Steinig, director of strategic initiatives and communications at the nonprofit Generations United, Holliday is among a growing number of young adults living with older people in different settings. Some live in retirement communities, while others take part in home-sharing arrangements where students and seniors share living space.Steinig says the idea helps address two challenges at the same time- rising housing costs and increasing loneliness. "People get out of their silos and live the way people used to live, which was more intergenerationally," she says."When people are living together, there's the opportunity for spontaneous interaction, rather than formal events. There's immediacy to connecting when people are in the same space," Steinig adds.Similar programmes have started elsewhere. Last year, St Olaf College in Minnesota introduced an initiative that allows students to live in retirement-community townhouses while interacting with older residents.The Marquette programme itself began in 2022. It was inspired by an intergenerational living programme launched in the Netherlands in 2012.
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