One of the goals of the Office of Intercultural Life (OIL) is to create a sense of community among the students we serve. One of the ways we achieve this is through the Cultural House communities. OIL supports four live-in communities, each with a mission that provides students with an inclusive space to call their own:

  • Cultural House for Asian Identities (CHAI)
  • Neil House (African-American/African diaspora)
  • La Casa del Sol (Hispanic/Latine)
  • Khéya Kiƞ Ihdúwitayapi – The Turtles Gather (Indigenous)

These Cultural House are theme communities, intended for students interested in living together and building a community that fosters belonging and raises awareness of history and culture. All are invited to participate in the intentional educational and social programs provided by the house members.

For more information, please contact the OIL office.

2025-26 Updates and Building Information

There have been several exciting changes to the Cultural House communities during the 2024-2025 school year! Fall 2024 marked the opening of several newly completed living spaces as a part of the Student Life and Housing Plan, including the two new Union Street housing projects that are now the new homes to our four Cultural House Communities.

2024-25 also marked the first year of a House Community dedicated to Indigenous life – Khéya Kiƞ Ihdúwitayapi (The Turtles Gather) – so there are now more opportunities for students to become involved!

What are the four different Cultural House communities?

La Casa del Sol, Freedom House, the Cultural House for Asian Identities (CHAI), and Khéya Kiƞ Ihdúwitayapi (The Turtles Gather) are the four communities and they will continue to be supported communities in the 2025-26 academic year.

Where do the Cultural House Communities live on campus?

The Multicultural Houses and Neil House locations on the Carleton campus map

The new buildings are located near the corner of 1st St E and Union St S, adjacent to the townhouses and along the walking path that leads from Musser Hall to downtown Northfield. The illustration shows where on the current Carleton map the buildings are, along with a zoomed in image of how the buildings look from above.

Neil House is home to the Freedom House Community, and is a two floor townhouse-style living space. The lowest level of this building is a meeting and gathering space which is open and available for the whole campus to use.

La Casa del Sol, the Cultural House for Asian Identities (CHAI), and Khéya Kiƞ Ihdúwitayapi communities will live in the three different two floor townhouse-style living spaces on the upper level of the Multicultural House building. The lowest level of this building is the Multicultural Center, which is open and available for the whole campus to use.

How many beds are in the Cultural Houses?

Neil House

The residential space consists of a two floor living space above the community gathering space on the lower level of the building (layout not shown in the files below). On the first floor there is one accessible bedroom (single), and on the second floor there is one single and three doubles for a total occupancy of 8 students.

Multicultural House

There are three different two floor living spaces above the Multicultural Center (layout not shown in the files below) as part of the Multicultural House complex identified on the map.

The north unit is for Casa del Sol. On the first floor there is one accessible bedroom (single), and on the second floor there are two singles and three doubles for a total occupancy of 9 students.

The center unit is for Khéya Kiƞ Ihdúwitayapi. On the first floor there is one accessible bedroom (single), and on the second floor there are two singles and two doubles for a total occupancy of 7 students.

The south unit is for CHAI. On the first floor there is one accessible bedroom (double), and on the second floor there are three singles and two doubles for a total occupancy of 9 students.