Eastern has been expanding fast over the past few years; the acquisition of North campus and the leasing of Hocker Hall are attempts to expand the campus along with the student body.
Eastern closed the deal to buy property at Valley Forge – including a football stadium, track, an athletic field and pickle ball courts, on Feb. 27 of 2026. This property included several apartments which would go on to house Eastern upperclassmen. The sale happened because Valley Forge’s 7-12 grade Military Academy would close down following Spring 2026. The property Eastern acquired included apartment style housing, which would go on to house EU upperclassmen, specifically seniors.
Therefore, the sale was doubtless helpful in housing upperclassmen but did not address the housing situation for the many first-years coming to Eastern Spring of 2026. Resident Director Aaron Kirk explained that “we were basically running out of room on campus.” There was an overflow of first-years – “about thirty male students who we had to find housing placement for, and about ten/fifteen female students.” Eastern’s student body was expanding, and the campus simply was not large enough.
According to Kirk, the final nail on the coffin, that confirmed Eastern would need to expand housing, was the unexpected closing of University at Valley Forge in the Summer of 2026. The University provided several transfers and taught-out opportunities for its students, including at Eastern University, meaning that Eastern would have to also accommodate these new transfers.
However, preceding the closure of University at Valley Forge, Eastern housing also found an – albeit temporary – solution: the leasing of Hocker Hall. Kirk said that he imagines that the leasing of Hocker “is more of a test solution to over occupancy.” That is, the school will rent Hocker for the year as a kind of experiment, “to see if we are growing enough to purchase other buildings.”
Hocker Hall is at Eastern’s North Campus which was formerly Valley Forge. Students cannot walk between North Campus and main campus. Instead, shuttles run every 15 minutes to transport students back and forth.
First-year Tim Curcuruto, who lives at Hocker Hall, said that the shuttle system was “a little rusty the first week. A couple of times there was a shuttle that didn’t come, and I had to wait another fifteen minutes.” But he added that “by now it’s very regular.” Even so, the reality of going back and forth can be “inconvenient.” For example, Curcuruto explained that when he wants to just grab a book from his dorm, he has to “wait for shuttles, and then go all the way out, run and grab my stuff, get back in the shuttle, and come back” to main campus.
Curcuruto also experienced something of a hassle on move-in day. Curcuruto was meant to move in early, on the Aug. 21. However, “two days before,” according to him, “I got a call… and was told that Hocker Hall wasn’t ready for us. So, instead of moving into Hocker Hall, I had to just bring my camping stuff to stay in Sparrowk Hall.”
Curcuruto is grateful for all the support and kindness he has received – from housing, from Res Life, and from the shuttle drivers. About move-in day, he said, “everyone did a good job to make it as easy as possible.” Similarly, he said that “everyone who is part of the shuttle system, RA’s, etc. – they understand how inconvenient it is… and put in so much care because of it.”
However, he admitted that “to be honest, it’s mostly downsides,” at Hocker Hall. Curcuruto said, “I think everyone who is in-the-know about Hocker knows that it’s a pretty big misunderstanding and issue – it shouldn’t be this way… letting in all these [new students] and then not giving them housing on campus.” Curcuruto admitted that he tries “not to stay in the dorm as much as possible, because it’s so far away, and I’m new, and I want to make connections.”
