They certainly do not! In the summer months, UW–Madison’s residence halls may not be the hives of activity that they are from August to May, but they do stay active. The halls host about 400 summer students (especially international students), as well as people attending summer camps, conferences, and SOAR — in all, about 18,000 guests from 40 countries spend at least one night in the halls in summer. And this isn’t a new practice, either: for nearly a century, summer res halls have kept their doors open (except when locked; give people a little privacy when sleeping or changing). According to Housing’s Brendon Dybdahl, the res halls close for cleaning and prep between commencement and Memorial Day. Then they’re in use until August 10, after which they get two weeks of downtime to prepare for student move-in day. Photo by Jeff Miller, University Communications.