Campus Advantage, a Texas-based student-housing firm, is working to provide on-campus amenities to students feeling isolated from the college experience.

Campus Pointe Apartments are now under new ownership after executives of Campus Advantage announced their first property purchase in Ohio.

The decision comes as a result of the firm’s interest in Kent State’s “ideal” off-campus housing market, said Michael Orsak, senior vice president of investment at Campus Advantage. He said Kent State’s size and student population were greatly considered during the decision-making process.

“We think Kent State is a good off-campus student housing market to own student housing in,” he said. “The full on-campus market and the limited off-campus housing is what attracted us.”

Orsak said the firm has decided to withhold the price at which the property was purchased, but he expects the transition to be “nothing but beneficial” to residents and residential life. He said off-campus residents can expect a more lively, authentic college experience with the addition of new residential life programs throughout the complex.

“It would entail have a very similar residential life program style to that of Kent State’s on-campus,” he said. “So we would have social activities, career development programming, educational programming for the residents… how to understand your own personal finances.”

In terms of structure and staff, Orsak said he doesn’t foresee any significant changes to the property’s daily operations with the exception of “community assistants,” or student employees, who will serve as off-campus equivalents to Resident Assistants on campus.

“We expect to have a full staff of 8 to 10 community assistants on sight to provide that residential programming to all the residents of the property,” he said.

David Oltmanns, a Campus Pointe employee, said he’s unsure of many of the details but hasn’t been informed of any changes since the property’s transfer.

“It’s going to be the same,” he said. “We have the same management staff, it’s just new owners. We’re still going to have the park out front and everything.”

The complex, previously owned by Richland Communities, Ltd. offers 198 units to students and usually runs at full capacity.

Campus Advantage manages more than 45 student housing communities in 19 states, according to its website. It was founded in 2003 and investors have been acquiring student-housing since.

Christina Suttles is a city reporter for the Daily Kent Stater. Contact her at [email protected]