Editor's Note: This is part three of a three part Special Report. Make sure to check out part one and part two.
SAN DIEGO (KOGO) - University and college administrators are hoping to build more on-campus housing so students can avoid the struggles of paying high rent off campus.
"The rents outside have become so expensive that the university housing is between 20 and 30 percent below market," said Pradeep Khosla, PhD, Chancellor of the University of California San Diego.
The lack of the lack of affordable housing on college campuses is not only causing problems for students but for communities as well. Chancellor Khosla says the UC San Diego campus currently has about 42,000 students but only about 19,000 beds in student housing units, and he wants to change that.
"The more students we can house on campus, the more pressure we take away on the rental housing market in the communities," Khosla said.
While it's not clear just how many students are facing housing insecurity or homelessness, the university has a basic needs center on campus to provide students with resources and assistance, including temporary on-campus housing. Beyond that, the university has established a program to help students facing homelessness to find places to live off campus.
UC San Diego is one of two University of California campuses recommended by the state finance department to receive a grant to build affordable housing on campus for students. Khosla says if the legislature approves the nearly $100 Million in funding, the university would apply it to current student housing projects which are costing the campus over a billion dollars, but will provide another 5,300 beds.