November 12, 1999

More Community Colleges Are Building Dormitories

By ERIK LORDS

2-year institutions see them as vital to efforts to recruit students

As classes end here on the Spring Creek campus of Collin County Community College, dozens of students lug knapsacks to their cars for the drive home. Simon Kent, a sophomore, has a much shorter commute. He walks less than 100 yards, to his stylish new apartment on the campus.

Until recently, only a few community colleges had dormitories, mostly in rural areas, where commuting is nearly impossible for some