Students discussed campus living, including work orders, recycling, laundry facility access for students with disabilities and the possibility of installing pianos in first-year dorms at a conversation about community living Nov. 8.
Hannah Brown ’19, the Student Union President, and Jamele Adams, the Dean of Students, led the conversation in Skyline Commons. Various members of the Department of Community Living (DCL), Campus Operations and the Counseling Center answered student questions.
Students brought up concerns of work orders not being addressed and were wondering what they should do if this occurs. They were told that work orders are prioritized in the manner of urgency and available manpower, which may cause delays. However, if a work order is not addressed for a long period of time, students should put in the work order again.
A large concern was the fact that laundry facilities are inaccessible to students who are visually impaired, particularly due to the card swipe machines. DCL responded by saying that they would look into this. The issue of poor maintenance of the machines was also brought up. Student were told that the machines are all new and there should not be systematic issues. If issues do occur, students were told to report them to DCL.
Students also asked about where they should go if they have an idea of something that could improve community living. In this case, students should go to the area coordinator to see if this idea is not already being implemented. The Community Emergency and Enhancement Fund (CEEF) has an initiative where, in September, students can bring ideas and some of them will be implemented. The Sustainability Committee of the Senate can also help with such initiatives. Alternatively, students can go to quad senators and community councils.
The issue of the installment of pianos in freshman dorms was also discussed. Tim Touchette, the Director of DCL, explained that, although accessibility was originally cited as the reason for the denial of the request for pianos in the lounges, it was a miscommunication between Senator Alex Chang ’22 and DCL. The current issue with the installment of pianos is the lack of funds; however, it is still in the process of being discussed. Touchette brought up the issue of the high costs of maintenance of pianos as well as the fact that the pianos that are currently in lounges are not frequently used.
The question of recycling signs being printed on paper was brought up. The Head CA responded saying that they will order recycling stamps to replace the current signs, and mentioned the fact that digital signage is currently a project in the works. He also highlighted that the reduction of paper usage is a high priority for the university as a whole.
A student asked if there were any plans to increase options for senior housing, as only 76 percent of students live on campus. DCL explained that the issue regarding the lack of housing for upperclassmen is that sophomores declare their intent to live on campus and then release their contract not long before move-in. This leaves DCL with not enough time to address these issues and leaves many open rooms that could have been occupied by upperclassmen.
The panelists talked about current discussions about making the on-campus living requirement for sophomores as well. It was decided that this will definitely not be implemented for the next academic year. The intent to send out the survey of whether students would prefer to have housing separated by graduating class or not was also declared.
Another project mentioned was the installment of monitoring to all entrances to residence halls. At the beginning of the next academic year, most halls should have them. The Head of the Sustainability Committee said that they are currently working on making a plant room in the library. Another idea was to put art around campus. Better ways of community building were also discussed. The event was sponsored by the Student Union and the Dean of Students Office.
