A Juilliard student sleeps homeless on Penn Station

Further to Juilliard’s decision to refuse accommodation to foreign students over the holidays, we have received this submission from an anonymous contributor. We have no way of validating the person’s identity or the facts of this case, but the school’s heartless attitude to overseas students makes this account all too plausible. Si non e vero…:

As a first year Juilliard student, I have been sleeping in NYC’s Penn Station, the 24-hr FedEx on 59th St, and sometimes random Hotel lounges to make ends meet. I asked if there were any of the dorm rooms available for students who are homeless and the Dormitory people never responded after emailing twice, the Financial Aid office said “sure – just sign here for $18,000+ a year like all the rest of the students do” and when asking someone on the Deans Level they said “let me get back to you” and nothing.  While I’d like to remain anonymous- it is true I wander  the streets at night after Juilliard closes as midnight and count the minutes til it opens around 8am. Sometimes security will let me in at 6:30am if I can catch the right guy.  The school has millions of not over a billion in donations and the vast majority of it goes to the bloated Administration staff salaries for a private school like Juilliard and the students are told “just take more loans, you’re not an exception”. Even after telling them my circumstances.  The answer came back “we’ll tell us if you’re returning or not for the Spring”.  I said “you’ve just lost another Juilliard student because I can’t afford it”. They answer the same every time “just sign here and get more loans”. And off they go to their comfortable Mahanttan apartments, another days hard work is ended.  Would love to see the number of what salaries are and how much donations they get.  It’s criminal.  And I’m done.

I got a job teaching 10 1/2 hours away and lived in a little office there (we are NOT supposed to and people check the rooms for homeless people sleeping there every morning) but that money going to transportation to get to NYC has been used and I’m struggling to better myself and get an education at Juilliard when the truth is, they don’t care – and I have explained my case to Juilliard. They really don’t. They set aside rooms for people who might need them – but you ask they want to charge you the full standard rates and fees and shrug if you don’t want to.

Juilliard chief Joseph Polisi with students

UPDATE: Juilliard’s homeless students – some harsh facts of life.