Several faith-based dorms are opening on campuses across the country, and not just at private institutions.

And while the free expression of some faiths are challenged at a few institutions, Allie Grasgreen of Inside Higher Ed has a detailed review of the new trend in campus housing.

The new Phi Kappa Theta fraternity house at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln is exclusive: it only houses students who are members of the Roman Catholic Church.

The fraternity – on private property that is considered part of campus, but opened, owned and operated by the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Newman Center at the university – is already filled to capacity, with about 65 beds claimed. The fraternity itself has existed for a half-dozen years, but this is the first time its members have enjoyed their own housing.

“That’s been the remarkable thing, is that even without the living space, there has been this demand,” Nebraska Dean of Students Matt Hecker said.

Nebraska is one of several public and private universities that are adding various forms of faith-based housing. This fall alone, new residences are also opening up at Florida Institute of Technology, Troy University and Texas A&M University at Kingsville. Another, at Purdue University, is slated to open within the next few years. (Others, including the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, have offered such housing for decades.)

Most of these residences are privately owned by groups like the Newman Center — and for students at public institutions, that separation from the university generally avoids legal issues raised by government support for religion. But that’s not the only type of housing that’s growing in popularity. Interfaith living-learning communities, where students learn about spirituality but aren’t required to believe in any religion, such as the one at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, are on the rise as well, said Patricia Martinez, president of the Association for College and University Housing Officers – International.

“Many are welcoming to all faiths and allow students to explore their own spirituality and define that for themselves,” Martinez, who is also director for residential communities at Northern Illinois University, said in an email.

But some have caused controversy, including the new dorm at Troy, which requires applicants to submit letters of reference demonstrating some interest in faith or religion. While the Newman Student Housing Fund designed and developed the project, the university manages it. Initially, campus officials were quoted as saying that non-Christian students could move in “if there was space available.”