Mather House
Mather House features a tight-knit community with an infectious House spirit and an amazing residential staff, plus unparalleled river views. And, you know what they say about more singles... ;)
Quirks & Perks
If it wasn’t already clear from their last Housing Day video, Mather has a contagious sense of House pride. When it comes to IM's, Mather is the place to be, having won the Straus Cup back-to-back (“Pfft, champions.”). The undeniable warmth and close-knit community of Mather extend beyond students and to the House administration and tutors. “On our sophomore orientation trip … the Mather Faculty Deans just sat next to me and started chatting and wanting to know who I was. I think that that’s a very common occurrence in Mather,” HoCo co-chair Michelle G. Kurilla ’22, a Crimson news comp director and design executive, said.
Mather maintains its strong community with a host of social events throughout the year. Mather HoCo holds bi-weekly Happy Hours (instead of steins) in the Big TV room, with food, strobe lights, and water pong. Every Sunday, you can get free cappuccinos and baked goods at Coffee Bar in the senior common room. Annual foam party Mather Lather and Fall Fest, an outdoor carnival-esque social held near Halloween, are among the House traditions. In the week leading up to Housing Day, House residents also partake in Mather Week, with events like Dogs & Donuts and other Mather-ish things like “wearing all grayscale.”
But your favorite members of the Mather community will undoubtedly be the House dogs: Kira, Cory, and Cheetah. “Cory is what keeps Mather going. He’s at every event and .... always saying hi to everybody,” according to HoCo co-chair Renee Hua ’22.
Staying Connected
Freshmen who get into Mather can look forward to a tight knit community even during these isolating unprecedented times. Mather’s HoCo has adapted some of their traditions into the virtual world. Mather’s website boasts a “Meet Mather” section where incoming residents can meet fellow Matherites in a game similar to Quizlet. Mather HoCo regularly holds game nights and has replicated their popular Happy Hour over Zoom. Last year, Mather adapted their annual Louis Cup, traditionally a fall event where teams compete for points through different competitions: “We did a gingerbread building contest, an ugly sweater contest for the holidays. We did a pumpkin carving contest,” Hua explained.
Last year, the HoCo used its Instagram as its main platform for connecting with new Matherites. Each HoCo member had a day to take over the House’s Instagram. They gave virtual room tours, a virtual House tour, a welcome video, and answered any questions new Matherites had (the takeovers are on their Instagram highlights!). In addition to all these events, incoming Matherites all receive swag bags on Housing Day filled with housing merch. “We were able to mail shirts, water bottles, phone stickers, laptop stickers to all of the new Matherites … so they all have a piece of Mather merch,” Hua said.
All About Housing
Mather has the unbeatable perk of guaranteed singles every year. “Other Houses where traditionally sophomores may be in a hallway double — that won’t happen in Mather,” Kurilla said. Most sophomores are housed on the third floor of Mather’s low rise in a duplex, a two-story suite with a spacious common room, accommodating 4 to 5 people.
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While sophomore housing in Mather is definitely luxurious, the other House amenities are just as impressive. Mather residents enjoy studying, eating, and hanging out with friends in their dining hall, complete with natural light and gorgeous views of the river. “Our dining hall is really our hub of social life,” according to Hua. And thanks to Mather’s system of tunnels, you won’t even have to go outside to get there!
Mather’s strong social life is bolstered by its infamous Junior Common Room, a large space for parties and mixers. But Mather is also the perfect setting for more wholesome gatherings, whether you want to watch “The Bachelor” with your blockmates in the Big TV room or have friends over in your common room (and show off your amazing housing, of course).
Your Questions, Answered
Want to know even more about everyone's favorite concrete jungle? Kurilla and Hua have you covered!
What is one thing you want freshmen to know about your House?
RH: If you get into Mather, you will be so loved and supported. All our tutors are so genuine and care so much for your wellbeing. The Faculty Deans all want to get to know you and help make your life easier … Same with our res dean, he’s always just willing to sit down and talk and help you out with whatever you need. There’s so much support for a student in Mather. There’s so much diversity among the tutors that you would be hard pressed to find that you couldn't relate to any of the tutors.
MGK: From the moment you find out that you are going to live in Mather your sophomore year, you are part of the Mather community, and you will be welcomed in.
What do you think makes Mather special?
RH: The tight knit community. I think what makes Mather really really special is the fact that everyone knows everyone. It's a big House, not going to lie, but you can walk into the dining hall and be able to name basically every single person sitting there because of how much the House tries to facilitate community.
MGK: A lot of people have things to say about our architecture, but our architecture actually facilitates lots of relationships. If you think about it, in the low rise, you have four people living in a suite and then you connect directly to another four people living in another suite. And you have common rooms that can hold gatherings. So you really get to know lots of people when you have these big open spaces.
If you had to describe your House in 3 words what would they be?
RH: I'm going to let you pick, you're the English major. [Laughs]
MGK: Social, spirited, and supportive.
What is your favourite Mather memory?
MGK: I would say one of the best memories was sophomore orientation when we went to Spectacle Island. It was a day trip with all of the sophomores in Mather and the House advisors, the House administration. And it was really fun. There was a beach, you could go on a mini hike. I felt like I got to know most of the sophomore class during that.
What side of TikTok would Mather be on?
RH: The side of TikTok where people do kind of dumb things that are really, really funny. Like the girl that made the last shot of beer bong, and then got on the couch and leapt off the couch, landed on a table and broke the table in half. That side of TikTok.
Read our overviews of the other Houses here!