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Show i 1 I 4 OPINION and fhe Shaw Sfudent Lounge STDs ANGIE MERKLEY OP-E- CONTRIBUTOR D the Shaw Student Lounge wa renovated., would you use the space more often than you do now? The saying goes, We should U Aw : )t it t have couches I dont feel like 111 get Chlamydia from." At least, thats what one of many students said in a survey I j ! , J W T iA rn f IvA KK 'A tftA WA I ; ! f hh: ;m 1 iatt, ? JNS ! 1 J i t t i i : How often do you sit In the Shaw Student Lounge? (The area In Shaw with the TV and couches) it teUB 1 IA Ai ( imtk irr Bw tJi L socializing area. That being said, ; i1' the Shaw Student Lounge would be a perfect location for fostering a community and providing space for students to socialize and work on projects together. Too bad the place is freaking j i I rm L r Aii iiit 'f 'i IS, 14 H' ,V 1, $i 1,W Kse t A t cut im tw) 4M l? i V A WTlWflfe iy fait 4,41 frt Student Loung should be renovated? (cfeantf, new furniture, more accessible outlets for Do you tftmk the Shaw cJuirgm er4 .W fu 9 i.;.' in Kk hn W i i 5 TJU 1. , fe4f distributed regarding the state of the Shaw Student Lounge. In one of my communication courses, I was assigned to a group with the task of addressing a problem on campus and creating a proposal to fix it. It didnt take long to decide that the lounge area in Shaw was a serious problem. There are rips and concerning, questionable stains on the couches. There are no tables or outlets for chargers. The TV only plays South Park, which is subjectively awful and not what should be in a community environment (Why not sports? Everyone likes sports. Sort of.) Westminster is as small as it gets, which means there are not many spaces for students to work on assignments, foster a community or just relax. The library is meant to be a quiet, academic area not meant for much else. Bassis is so spread out with hard, uncomfortable furniture that its hard to create a M( 'frff1 iT KPijrn v disgusting. Over the course of a week in April, I distributed a survey to 240 students. The results showed the blatant fact that students are not satisfied with our rancid, putrid World War I trench of a student lounge. Of the students surveyed, 50 percent answered that they never sit in the Shaw Student Lounge. Another 22 percent answered that they sit there less than once a month, meaning that nearly three-fourtof these students do not avail themselves to this area as much as one would expect for a student lounge. When asked if the Shaw Student Lounge should be renovated, 77 percent voted yes. Following this question, students were asked what specific changes they would like to see most. -- amount of responses included better and cleaner seating in the area. New couches and chairs. look They dirty and unsanitary, a little embarrassing to walk by." MORE OUTLETS ALL OVER THE PLACE." The furniture is RIDICULOUSLY dirty, stained and filthy. It is time for new furniture, or at least an upgrade." The final question I asked students was if they would use the Shaw Student Lounge more often than they do now if the renovations were applied. A total of 78 percent answered yes. My group and I proposed renovations to get more appropriate and cleanable furniture, add outlet access and to put up student artwork. We presented our proposal to Trisha Teig, assistant dean of students, and Kamell Black, director of student involvement. They gave us great feedback and advice on how to further our proposal. Everything seemed to be going perfectly and we believed that this could become more than just a homework assignment The one problem? We were talking to the wrong people. Teig and Black both said A large their departments arent the ones from which to get funds and that the maintenance staff is in charge of these sorts of projects. Our sails deflated and we were beyond unmotivated to present our work again to unfamiliar individuals. It was the end of the semester and our ambition was shriveled up like the dead spiders in the lounge couch cushions. Because of this, Im afraid I need to apologize to anyone who may get Chlamydia from my lack of motivation to better this school. All I hs angst-fille- d, can hope for is that this passive-aggressi- ve article makes its way into the hands of our wise maintenance staff. So please, dear maintenance staff members, for the sake of all of our genitals, do something about the lounge. |