At last Thursday's Campus Council meeting, Residence Life and Housing Services announced several housing policies for next year-including, online room selections, co-ed blocking, increases to on-campus housing by conversion of "oversized" rooms and the release of rising juniors from their housing contracts. It is with these new developments in mind that we have become increasingly skeptical of RLHS.

RLHS, the academic departments and Duke Dining Services represent the three most important actors in students' daily lives. As such, this trio needs to actively seek student input. We have seen such efforts from both the academic realm and Dining Services, but so far RLHS has disappointed us.

Take, for example, the implementation of Campus Council's recent resolution to create a gender-neutral bathroom on West Campus. The action seems to be a gesture to many groups-it signals concern for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and allows RLHS to appear responsive to Campus Council's requests. But though it is a step in the right direction, is a small one; just one gender neutral bathroom will not make a substantive difference to quality of life.

And although we are relieved to finally see co-ed blocking become a reality, the change is long overdue. We hope RLHS is more eager to adapt to student demand in the future-for example, if students want truly co-ed halls as well.

The online Room Pix process exemplifies the same tardiness in the face of strong student demand; RLHS trumpeted online Room Pix last year, only to hastily scramble for physical selections when a bug in the program appeared.

Pleased as we are that RLHS is giving online Room Pix another chance, we hope that they take adequate precautions to ensure the process runs smoothly. RLHS must articulate the process to students and have an effective backup plan-besides the old in-person method-in place should the system fail.

We understand that part of the problem is situational-Room Pix online was felled by a system error and the Few Quadrangle renovation has changed the playing field. But an organization like RLHS needs to take responsibility for its crucial role student life.

In the past few years, RLHS has been a largely reactionary body, but with heightened security concerns and the long-delayed plans for a new Central Campus, RLHS needs to become proactive.

Dining, which is like RLHS on a cost-recovery model, has proven that it is possible to work efficiently and take into account student needs. With the recent price hikes across campus eateries, it made a clear effort to communicate the reasons for this change with placards at dining locations. Dining has its finger on the pulse of student body, but more importantly, it understands the importance of treating students as customers.

Though RLHS' actions are more constrained, it also lacks the innovation and initiative to act upon student opinion that Dining Services exemplifies.

Though students are often frustrated with campus services, there is always an innate understanding that they act for the good of Duke students. But after the last few years, we must increasingly question whether RLHS really has our best interests in mind. It is this doubt, more than any one policy, that is the real crux of the issue.