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Quirks & Perks

“I can’t see myself living anywhere else,” said Flyby Blog editor and Winthrop House resident Annette Kim ‘25. Considering all of Winthrop’s amenities and opportunities for community building, it’s not hard to understand why.

Winthrop House boasts amenities that turn Winthrop House into Winthrop Home. Seemingly everywhere you turn, there’s a foosball table where Winthrop residents can show off their competitive spirit. Thropians can also be found working out in the house gym, socializing in the Lion’s Den, finding their zen in the meditation room, or creating new projects in the art room.

However, what makes Winthrop special is not limited to its hotel vibes and top-notch amenities. This year, Winthrop House is hosting scholar-in-residence Jonathan L. Kemper ’75. In this role, Kemper gives tours of John F. Kennedy’s suite, and can often be found socializing and networking with students in the d-hall.

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The d-hall is a hub for student activity at Winthrop House. At any time of day, students there can be found grabbing a meal, doing school work, or catching up with friends. One major perk of Winthrop House is that weekly “CS nights” — office hours for all CS courses — are held in the d-hall. So, if you’ve missed dinner on a Wednesday night, never fear; you can always grab a pizza slice from CS night.

The d-hall is just one area that brings Winthropians together. After all, community is central to Winthrop House. Winthrop’s faculty deans know their residents by name and are helpful resources for everything under the sun. Additionally, Winthrop hosts paw-ffice hours every Friday, where students can relax with puppies after a long week of classes.

If a puppy doesn’t do the trick to resolve stress, mozzarella sticks might. The student-operated Winthrop Grille is open every week from Thursday through Sunday and is the perfect place for an Oreo milkshake funded by BoardPlus. Winthrop truly has it all!

All About Housing

When it comes to sophomore housing, fear not! Winthrop is notably lacking in the miniscule hallway doubles that everyone fears will define their sophomore year. Any doubles tend to be found in mid-sized or larger suites, with a common room for added space. Even within suites, the doubles are decently sized, but for those who are bad with sharing space, don’t worry, there’s a place for you too! In fact, Housing Committee (HoCo) Co-Chair Adrian E. Guzman ‘25 commented that “sophomores tend to get singles if they want them.”

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Not only is Winthrop full of spacious suites, but it is one of the most recently renovated houses, which means the dorms are pristine and the vermin stay away! Sophomores also have the added benefit of having almost guaranteed housing within the House itself, rather than being sent off to overflow housing until their junior year. While Fairfax is a decent space for Winthrop’s overflow housing above JP Licks on Mass Ave., it is relatively small, so very few people end up outside of the three main buildings of Winthrop.

If you are lucky enough to end up in lovely Winthrop, be prepared to spend warm spring days in one of the house’s three courtyards (I know, three!), and be sure to give the tire swing a try on Housing Day!

Your Questions Answered

Here’s what Winthrop’s HoCo chairs have to say about the house!

What would you like freshmen to know about Winthrop?

AEG: I would want them to know that their involvement is super highly, deeply appreciate. Once that letter is given, everything the light touches is yours.

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What do you think is the most special part about the house?

Paurakh Rijal ‘25 (PR): I think everybody in this House cares about this House very deeply. And that also means our tutors and our faculty Deans, [they] really care about the people in the house. You’re able to forge better and more meaningful relationships with people in this house.

AEG: Yeah, our tutor put his body on the line for the football win. (Editor’s note: …what?)

What are some of your favorite house or community events?

PR: Our steins are really fun. I think it’s just a great time for students to get together and socialize. And then I would say, spring formal is really cool, too. That’s like our thing, we like to rent out a yacht, but this year, we’re hoping to try something different.

If your House was a potato, how would it be prepared?

PR: We’re trying to establish that our house is classy—swagger and nonchalance. If [the house] is a potato, it would be like waffle fries, but the way it was presented on the plate — like fancy garnish and maybe a little bit of seasoning on top. And it would come with a side of boom boom sauce.

AEG: I could also see some people in the House just eating a potato (editor’s note: as in… straight out of the ground?)

There’s a lot to love about Winthrop — from trivia nights, to paw-ffice hours, to the rumored Winthrop trampoline that nobody can seem to locate (seriously, let us know if you find it). So here’s to hoping the Housing gods smile down upon you this Housing Day and you find yourself joining the ranks of Winthrop!

Correction: March 6, 2024

A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the Winthrop Grille is open Tuesday through Sunday. In fact, the grille is open Thursday through Sunday.

A previous version of this article misspelled Jonathan L. Kempner’s middle initial.