The Badin Hall Bullfrogs played leapfrog over the 28 other dorms on campus to win Hall of the Year for the 2010-2011 academic year, the Hall Presidents Council announced Tuesday evening.
Keenan Hall and Walsh Hall received the awards for Men's Hall of the Year and Women's Hall of the Year, respectively.
Badin is the first residence hall to receive the honor for two consecutive years. Hall President's Council co-chair Alexa Doyle said the distinction was duly earned.
"We stand by our decision," Doyle said. "The applications from all dorms were especially strong this year, but Badin had a little something extra."
Badin president Lauren Baldwin said the environment within the dorm separated her hall from the others.
"Getting Hall of the Year again wasn't our goal," Baldwin said. "Our goal this year was to be the best community on campus."
Badin Hall vice president Margaret Bellon offered an explanation for how, as dorm leaders, they maintained such a strong sense of community.
"Lauren and I are both sophomores, so we only knew last year's Hall of the Year Badin Hall," Bellon said. "We won again because we didn't know how to live in a dorm that isn't as united as Badin."
Baldwin said Badin collaborated with other dorm events on campus and hosted Acousticafe on the dorm porch, which contributed to the dorm's success.
Badin's school spirit and hall spirit was a big part of the Hall Presidents Council's decision, according to Hall Presidents Council executive co-chair Mike Oliver.
"Badin stood out compared to every other dorm," Oliver said.
Keenan Hall worked hard to earn the distinction of Men's Hall of the Year, Keenan president Raymond Gallagher said.
"[Hall of the Year] was a goal that we had going into this year," Gallagher said. "The effort was a collaboration of different groups and classes in the dorm."
Instead of adding many events to the dorm portfolio, Keenan worked to make their signature events bigger and placed a large emphasis on the Keenan Revue, Gallagher said.
Keenan vice president Dennis Smith will serve as hall president next year. He said he hopes Keenan can continue its success.
"It is going to be a hard act to follow next year," Smith said.
According to Walsh Hall president Julie Zorb, the Wild Women of Walsh were honored to earn Women's Hall of the Year.
"It's great to get recognition for the amazing community we had this year," Zorb said.
Walsh worked to improve past events and create new traditions under strong senior leadership and an entirely new hall staff, she said.
This year, Walsh founded a local chapter of a national organization called Girls on the Run, Zorb said. The organization works with elementary school girls and teaches them about body image and exercise as they prepare to run a 5k.
The dorm's work with the charity was a large part of their success, Zorb said.
Doyle and Oliver said Hall Presidents Council determines the award recipients based on monthly Rockne portfolio submissions and the dorm's overall contribution to campus life. The Rockne submissions keep the Hall Presidents Council updated on each dorm's activities as they promote the academic, athletic, liturgical, environmental, social and multicultural aspects of dorm life.
"We take a step back and look at who enriched campus life the most through their residence hall," Oliver said.
