Special Interest Housing

To learn about the houses, you can view their websites, contact us, or contact the advisor(s) listed under each house. Houses are listed in alphabetical order. The below information on locations for current theme and special interest communities is subject to change.

Anthony House

Mission: We are a creative food and labor communal co-op cultivating a space of action. We encourage creative, personal, and social growth and support. Crafts House has long been devoted to providing a support system for those who feel a lack of support or acceptance elsewhere at Tufts. We make communal, dietary sensitive meals most times a week, and equitably share resources and labor. Under normal circumstances we run the Crafts Center – which started in the basement of the house – where artistic skills and supplies are shared.

Vision: We strive to create an actively anti-racist and anti-bias space, in which activism and cultural exploration is incorporated into events and day to day experience. We hope to create a stronger presence in the Tufts community and beyond.

• Interim Contact: Thomas Wlodek

Learn More

Asian American House

Mission: The Asian American House provides a safe space for students of Asian or Asian American descent in a predominantly white institution. Residents of the unit organize activities related to the Asian American experience. Past activities have included an art exhibit, food fair, informal afternoon gatherings with faculty, and discussions on Asian American issues and topics.

• Contact: Aaron Parayno

Learn More

Bartol House

Mission: The  overall  space  we  strive  to  create  at  Arts  Haus  is  one  that  inspires  each  resident  to  come together  to  create  a  strong  and  supportive  hub  of  creative  folks.  While  Arts  Haus  has  typically engaged  the  broader  Tufts  community  by  hosting  events  such  as  costume  parties  and live-music  shows,  COVID  restrictions  have  drastically  limited  the  scope  of  what  we  can  do. In spite  of  unprecedented  challenges,  residents  continue  to  build  a  caring  environment  where we prioritize  taking  care  of  one  another  while  finding  ways  to  have  fun  safely.  Programs  in Fall  2020  has  included  painting  nights,  movie  viewings,  Fall  pumpkin  painting,  a  murder mystery  program  on  Halloween,  and  even  just  simply  studying  together.  At  the  core  of  Arts Haus  is  to  provide  a  home  to  uplift  each  other  in  ways  meaningful  to  us  –  by  artists,  for artists.

Vision: COVID has deeply  changed  the  ways  in  which  residents  at  Arts  Haus  interact  with  one another.  The  pandemic  has  challenged  us  in  reevaluating  what  it  means  to  support  each other  and  strengthen  our  community  with  meaningful  experiences  both  difficult  and  joyous. Moving  forward,  I  envision  Arts  Haus  to  continue  being  a  home  for  artists  to  feel  secure  in expressing  ourselves.  When  it  becomes  safer  to  do  so,  we  hope  to  slowly  begin  to  host events  that  invite  other  Tufts  students  into  our  space  to  enrich  the  community  with  funky fun,  artsy  excitement,  and  happy  memories.

• Contact: Angy Sosa

Learn More

Capen House

Mission: Capen House creates an environment for residents of the house to grow as individuals and as a group. Residents expand their knowledge of Blackness and the world around them through sharing experiences, cultivating conversations, and attending programming that amplifies their abilities and themselves.

Vision: To have strong bonds between residents that can lead into long-lasting connections; connections that stand the test of time and prove that Black People can continue to achieve meaningful dreams by coming together and being present in their lives

• Contact: Katrina Moore and Kella Merlain-Moffatt

Learn More

Chandler House

Mission: The Spanish Language House collaborates with the Spanish Program allows residents to develop greater fluency in Spanish and enhance their understanding of Spanish & Latin American countries, lifestyles, and cultures. Residents hold bi-weekly events where members of the Tufts community can stop by and enjoy refreshments and conversation. Rising senior and juniors will have priority during the selection process as well as prioritization for the single rooms within the house.

Vision: To practice the Spanish language and to expose residents to the cultures of various Spanish-speaking countries.

Members of the Spanish House have the opportunity to improve their practical, conversational Spanish daily. Residents should expect to communicate nearly exclusively in Spanish with their housemates and any other visiting Spanish speakers, at least when in the house. Applicants who are actively learning Spanish (non-native speaker, not fluent, etc.) should be ready to communicate in a second language at home, and excited to take on the challenge. Besides house residents who speak Spanish as a first language (primarily exchange students living in the house), we are all learning Spanish, and we are not shy to make mistakes and ask for help with a word or conjugation.

• Contact: Isabel Castro Escudero

Learn More

Chinese Language & Culture House

The Chinese Language & Culture House in collaboration with the Chinese Language Program is a language-based environment outside the classroom that promotes and facilitates language learning, cross-cultural exchange, and understanding within the larger community at Tufts.

• Contact: Shaomei Wang

Learn More

Davies House

Mission: Davies House, better known as International House (or "I-House") is a Tufts residence for 16 students from all over the world, including the US. The I-House offers an intercultural living arrangement for both international and domestic students with the goal of creating an environment in which residents can share their cultures and celebrate their differences among friends.

Vision: The vision of the International House is to promote unity and harmony among students from all of the world. We seek to create an equitable space for all of us to celebrate our own cultures and personalities, and we hope to serve as a beacon of hope, unity, and internationalism to the rest of the Tufts community.

• Contact: Lizzie Siegle and Sophia Alfred

Learn More

Ethnomusic House

• Contact: Stephan Pennington

FIRST House

Japanese Language House

Q’munity House

Mission: This community provides a safe space and welcoming environment for LGBTQ+ students on campus. Our mission is to maintain a friendly, non-judgmental space for members of our community to come together.

Vision: Our vision is to maintain a close community of queer students and allies for the purpose of facilitating friendship, understanding, and solidarity. 

The community provides a queer–friendly atmosphere for students who are interested in issues of gender and sexuality. Residents of this space create and maintain a living space that is affirming to all sexual and gender identities. The unit brings issues of queer students to the entire Tufts community through educational, social, and community programming. 45 Sawyer also serves as a social outlet for queer students and their friends and fosters the sense of community for which Tufts has come to be known

Past events have included the Annual Halloween and Valentines Day Parties, Thanksgiving "Family" Dinner, Super Smash Brothers Tournaments, "The L Word" viewing of key episodes, Glamour Trash Oscar Party, Fall Pumpkin Carving, and a group outing to Boston University's Annual Drag Ball.

• Contact: Hope Freeman

Learn More

Russian/Slavic and Central Asian Culture House

The Russian/Slavic and Central Asian Culture House allows residents interested in the cultures of Russian, East-European, and post-Soviet geopolitical space to engage in cultural and language activities as a part of their everyday life. Students interested in applying do not specifically need to have taken/be taking courses in Russian language and East-European culture, but rather need to have a demonstrated interest in the field or to be of the relevant background. Everyone interested in the culture, geography, and social life of the countries of ex-USSR or eastern Europe is welcome. Knowledge of Russian or other Slavic languages is not a requirement but is recommended, since one of the goals of the unit is to provide an opportunity for Russian language practice outside the classroom.

• Contact: Marina Aptekman

Learn More

Schmalz House

Mission: The Schmalz House, or Francophone house, is for students interested in speaking French. The house welcomes 2 exchange students from France and 8 undergraduate students who have completed FR22 (or equivalent). The residents speak French informally, share meals, and organize 3 events per semester in cooperation with the French section of the Department of Romance Studies. The idea is to improve one’s French, to expand one’s understanding of Francophone cultures, and to have fun together!

• Contact: Anne-Christine Rice

Learn More

Wyeth House

Mission: Residents of Wyeth house, also known as the German House, are curious about and interested in German culture and language. Together, they create a space that facilitates awareness and understanding of everything German--both for themselves and the larger Tufts community. The German House hosts long-standing events like Kaffeestunde and Filmabend, and residents are encouraged to shape the House’s purpose and offerings by organizing cultural, academic, and/or social activities related to German culture and language, whether independently or in collaboration with other campus groups and resources. House residents have the opportunity to live alongside German exchange students, and to further deepen their understanding of German language and culture. German language experience is a plus, but not required.

• Contact: Doris Pfaffinger: 617-627-2621

Learn More

Applications for Special Interest Housing are accessed via the Tufts University Housing Portal. To find the Housing Portal:

1. Log into SIS.
2. Click on “About Me,” then click on “Housing.”
3. Once you have reached the Home Page, click on “Application” on the top left of the screen.

• Theme and Special Interest Housing applications will be available beginning Monday, October 17 beginning at 12 p.m. and will close on January 23, 2024 at 5 p.m.
• General Housing applications will be available
  • Rising Juniors and Seniors: beginning Tuesday, October 17 through November 6 at 5 p.m. to be eligible to apply for a lottery number for on campus housing. Applications received after November 6 at 5 p.m. will automatically be added to the Housing Waitlist unless part of required housing groups (rising sophomores).  Rising Juniors and Seniors will still be eligible to apply for theme and special interest housing between November 6 and January 23, 2024. This process is separate from the Junior/Senior lottery process.
  • Rising Sophomores: beginning Tuesday, October 17 through January 23, 2024 at 5 p.m.
• Students noting that they are interested in participating in study abroad will not be eligible for a housing lottery number - this includes students who apply for theme housing or general housing. Those students will be placed on the housing waitlist.
• SMFA students living on Beacon Street are also required to apply for on-campus housing for their sophomore year.
• Rising Juniors and Seniors who are interested in learning more about the Off-Campus Housing process are encouraged to attend one of our upcoming webinars on the subject. For more information, please visit the off-campus housing page. Contact offcampusinfo@tufts.edu for more information or assistance.

University Housing Application, Interview, and Selection Timeline

*Please note that the process for theme and special interest selection has been moved slightly to account for the StAAR and OEO accommodations processes. If you are in need of a particular housing assignment due to medical or sincerely held religious beliefs, please refer to our accommodations process.

Housing Selection Dates for Theme & Special Interest Communities