The Associated Students of Madison Student Council heard a presentation from the Tenant Resource Center during its meeting Wednesday, to raise awareness of services the center offers to students.
The Tenant Resource Center has a contract with the university through ASM and its main service is “housing counseling,” according to Anders Zanichkowsky, program director of TRC.
Shared Governance Committee Chair Jessica Franco-Morales, who began an internship with the center this spring, presented alongside Zanichkowsky. She said she wanted to present to the council so TRC could be a resource for future grassroots movements, as well as to make more students aware of their services.
Students and faculty of UW-Madison make up 40,000 tenants in the central area of Madison, Zanichkowsky explained.
“That's a ton of money that we're all collectively paying into this rental market,” Zanichkowsky said.
He added often students don’t realize their rights and responsibilities as tenants and the ramifications it can have on their credit score.
TRC serves students on a walk-in basis with no charge, Zanichkowsky said. The center helps students understand their legal rights as renters, demonstrates how to navigate resources and provides mediation for roommate problems.
Additionally, Zanichkowsky said the center’s relationship with the McBurney Center allows it to provide resources to students looking for housing who need special accommodations.
Zanichkowsky and Franco-Morales also emphasized the unique infrastructure that this organization has, where interns go through an intense two-day training and learn an entire manual written specifically for TRC. Many of the staff are law or social services students, who Zanichkowsky said advocate for affordable housing throughout the community.
Franco-Morales encouraged council members to get involved with the issues TRC addresses.
“It's not a secret that Madison has an affordable housing issue,” Franco-Morales said. “A lot of people can't find affordable housing, we have a large homeless population and these issues aren't mutually exclusive.”
