Expansion crucial to future of UMass-Boston

To the Editor:

As Dorchester residents, we strongly support UMass-Boston's plans to gain prestige and increase the number of students and faculty as a means to compete with the other universities. As Dorchester's only university and the second largest in the UMass system, UMass-Boston should attract top quality students from all over the state. To achieve this, it must be able to have housing where students can benefit from a myriad of academic and social resources that come with a residential educational community.

The concerns as to the increased student population and strain on the area's resources are overstated because, UMass-Boston is isolated on Columbia Point and cut off from the rest of Dorchester by the six lanes of Morrissey Blvd. The only noticeable change to residents would be more students at the JFK/UMass T station as they travel downtown and back.

As graduates of UMass-Amherst and the University of California at San Diego and as teachers in urban schools, we understand the opportunity that is afforded to those who attend public universities, who receive a top-rate education at an affordable price. UMass-Boston's expansion is crucial in continuing this tradition.

Erin and Chris Martell, Dorchester