A New York College Is Giving Housing-Insecure Students Room to Thrive
This story was originally published by The 19th and republished with permission.
Grace Pavlock knew that earning a bachelor’s degree would require more than academic determination. Whether she remained in Texas or moved across the country, she faced the same uncertainty.
“I was always going to be on that cusp of homelessness and not having a place to stay.”
Living with family was not possible, and the cost of a traditional dorm room was beyond her reach. Even so, Pavlock held on to her dream of studying in New York City. The University of Mount Saint Vincent in the Bronx stood out for its public policy major, Catholic identity and, as she described it, “a beautiful campus.”
“It honestly was like the perfect fit,” Pavlock said. “Everything was great and wonderful, except for the fact that there was no way I was going to be able to afford it at all.”
Then she discovered Dax House.
Located on the university’s campus, the residence offers housing-insecure college women a private room for $250 a month. Residents also receive a permanent address that can help them access social services and the guidance of a case manager who assists with health insurance, career preparation and other needs.
For Pavlock, who had already earned an associate’s degree in Texas, Dax House opened the door to life as a full-time student. Instead of constantly calculating how she would afford food, housing and other essentials, she could invest her energy in college and her future.
Now 22 and entering her senior year, Pavlock is part of a much larger population of students quietly navigating housing instability.
The Hope Center for Student Basic Needs at Temple University’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine reports that nearly half of college students experience housing insecurity, while one in seven experience homelessness. Many are the first members of their families to attend college or come from communities historically underrepresented in higher education. After overcoming the challenges of enrolling, some learn that financial aid does not fully cover housing and meals.
Without stable support, these pressures can make students more likely to leave school before graduating. Dax House is designed to help change that outcome.
A home created through partnership
The University of Mount Saint Vincent operates Dax House in partnership with the Sisters of Charity of New York and Depaul USA, a nonprofit providing homeless services.
Depaul USA launched the national Dax Program in 2015 to address homelessness among college students. Today, it operates four residences in New York City and serves more than 90 students each year across cities that include Chicago, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
The program’s purpose extends well beyond providing a place to sleep. It surrounds students with practical support so they can finish their education, prepare for meaningful careers and create stable lives.
Unlike conventional dormitories, Dax House remains open throughout the year. Students do not have to leave during winter, spring or summer breaks. Pavlock has spent much of the summer there preparing her résumé and applying for fall internships with state lawmakers.
“We recognize that when students come to us, they come to us as a whole person,” said Susan R. Burns, president of the University of Mount Saint Vincent, which enrolls 4,225 students.
“Things like housing or lack of housing can affect their ability to show up fully for their studies. Students may be absolutely academically capable, but can’t fully engage in college because they’re worried about where they’re going to sleep.”
The university had already spent years supporting students without reliable housing. Its Mott Street Scholarship Program, established a decade ago, pays tuition, fees and housing costs for students who experienced childhood homelessness or aged out of foster care.
Over time, university leaders recognized that many other students were also at risk, even if they did not meet the scholarship’s requirements.
The Sisters of Charity of New York saw an opportunity to help. The congregation owned Rosary Hall, a two-story building on the Mount Saint Vincent campus, but seldom used its first floor. The sisters offered the space as a home for vulnerable students.
Renovations brought in new flooring, fresh paint, an improved kitchen and a generous living room with views of the Hudson River. Dax House officially opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on August 13, 2024.
During its first school year, eight women—including juniors, seniors and recent graduates—made their homes on the first floor. The sisters continued living upstairs. The residence addresses a particularly important need at Mount Saint Vincent, where undergraduate women outnumber men 2,222 to 748.
Stability that lasts beyond a semester
Colleges may offer emergency accommodations, motel vouchers or food pantries, but these resources are often temporary. Dax House provides something more enduring: an affordable, year-round home paired with individualized assistance.
Undergraduate students may remain in the residence for as long as 24 months. Recent graduates can stay for another year when necessary, giving them time to transition from college into their careers.
“It’s not just that we provide a safe, clean space for you to be,” said Mel Reyes, Dax Program director for New York City at Depaul USA.
“There are others that are students just like you and have a level of hardship just like you. And then our case management — they meet at minimum once or twice a month with the case manager who helps them talk about goals and helps them talk about needs.”
Case managers assist residents with applying for SNAP benefits, developing budgets, finding internships and building other practical skills that can support long-term independence.
“Sometimes what goes hand in hand with not having housing is not having food and not having medical care and not knowing where to go,” Reyes said.
Housing insecurity among college students can begin in many ways. Some students have lost family members or have relatives who are incarcerated or abusive. Others have escaped domestic violence or grown up amid family instability.
Pavlock was raised about an hour north of Houston. After her father died while she was in high school, she moved in with her grandparents because her mother lived elsewhere. Both grandparents were retired and unable to support her financially.
She described her background as “rough.” Several members of her family had not continued their education beyond middle or high school, leaving Pavlock to navigate college applications and financial aid largely by herself. She called the period before attending Mount Saint Vincent and moving into Dax House “troubling.”
“The amount of havoc that was going through my life and trying to figure out all this on my own was just insane because nobody in my family has ever been to college. No one knows what a FAFSA is. No one knows how hard it is to actually get scholarships and stuff like that.”
Bringing a hidden challenge into the light
Although college homelessness is widespread, it can be difficult to recognize. Students may continue attending lectures, completing assignments and joining class discussions while privately struggling to find meals or somewhere safe to sleep.
Robin Knox, development director for Depaul USA, said many students hesitate to tell others what they are experiencing.
“It’s definitely a hidden issue,” Knox said. “Students don’t want to readily share their challenges. They don’t want to be looked at as not having resources compared to their peers. It’s been partially not wanting to disclose that information, not feeling like there are resources available, and there’s a little bit of — ‘I can figure it out on my own.’”
Rising tuition and living expenses have brought greater attention to the problem in recent years. Leaving college without a degree can expose already vulnerable students to even more financial instability. With the right assistance, however, students can move forward with confidence.
University officials said most Dax House residents remain enrolled, graduate, obtain jobs or move into permanent housing.
“This is not just an issue of providing a bed,” Burns said. “It’s about changing students’ trajectory and helping them prepare for the future beyond their time at the university.”
Reyes also sees the Dax Program as an important way for colleges to retain talented students at a time when enrollment has fallen considerably from its 2010 levels.
“There is a demographic cliff happening,” she said. “In the next few years, there will not be enough people applying to colleges. Retention has become that much more important. The Dax Program is really part of that solution.”
From the edge of a shelter to a nursing career
One former resident illustrates the difference stable housing can make.
The student, who had been her high school’s valedictorian, arrived at Mount Saint Vincent close to entering a New York City shelter. Dax House provided her with a room, a $100 grocery stipend and a case manager who helped her receive SNAP benefits.
She lived there for six months while working part time. Residents are required to work at least 10 hours a week, making it possible to pay the monthly rent through a part-time or work-study position. Undergraduate rent is $250 per month, while graduate students pay $350.
According to a university spokesperson, the former resident is now a pediatric nurse earning $80,000 annually.
Her experience reflects the program’s larger vision: With affordable housing and thoughtful support, students can turn a difficult moment into the beginning of a flourishing career.
Finding time to lead, learn and serve
Pavlock hopes to build a similarly bright future in government.
“I want to do public policy and help people who can’t help themselves,” she said.
The security of Dax House has allowed her to experience college fully. She has joined campus organizations, participated in mentorship and pursued internships that might otherwise have been out of reach.
At Broadridge, a global technology company, she expanded her understanding of finance and public policy. She also worked as a social media intern for Depaul USA, putting her enthusiasm for design to use.
“I don’t mean to brag, but I’m just so good at Canva,” she said, with a laugh.
Her campus contributions have continued to grow. Through her job with the Wellness Cove, which promotes student health and well-being, she has advocated for sexual assault awareness. She has also served as treasurer of Model United Nations and as a Class of 2027 senator in the Student Government Association.
Pavlock believes that none of these opportunities would have been possible if she had been forced to devote all her time to earning enough money for housing.
“I’d just be working 40 hours a week,” Pavlock said. “I would not be in any clubs. I wouldn’t have any other kind of on-campus jobs or internships.”
A model for helping more students succeed
Dax House demonstrates what can happen when colleges, nonprofits and community partners combine their strengths. Expanding the approach, however, requires both funding and commitment.
“Funding is a large part of it,” Burns said. “Depaul USA is a nonprofit organization. They do fundraising to secure the funding necessary to provide the case managers, the residential support, and so forth. But also, they need partners in that space. The reality is, there are not enough people lobbying to change the system.”
Another obstacle is persuading more higher education institutions that supporting housing-insecure students belongs within their mission. Research indicates that students with stable housing participate more actively in campus life and have a stronger chance of completing their education.
Pavlock sees that potential every day among the residents of Dax House.
“I can’t tell you one person that’s in my house specifically that is not an amazing leader on campus, who’s not in three to four different clubs, who’s not doing three different things on campus at one time,” Pavlock said.
“We’re so ingrained on campus that if other universities were to have a program like ours, they would see these crazy leaders emerge — because we’re given the ability to do so.”
Dax House gives students more than an affordable room. It gives them steadiness, community and the freedom to discover what they can contribute. For Pavlock and her housemates, that foundation has created space not only to remain in college, but also to lead, serve and look toward the future with hope.
