Monday, Capital’s Office of Residential and Commuter Life opened a new commuter lounge in the basement of the Lohman Complex. The lounge, which is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., is only accessible to students commuting this semester.
Director of Residential and Commuter Life Jon Geyer, who oversaw the project, said that of Capital’s total undergraduate population, commuters make up close to 30 to 40 percent of it. Because commuters constitute a sizeable percentage of the student body, the Office of Commuter life is careful to pay attention to those students’ needs.
“Periodically over the last couple of years we’ve sent some surveys out to commuters,” said Geyer. “One of the things they asked for is having some space that was dedicated towards them.”
The space, which is modestly furnished with two leather couches, a wooden storage closet, and a mini-fridge, offers commuter students a quite repose in between classes. Geyer points out that although the room is fairly simple right now, it is located right by a public student lounge in Lohman that offers vending machines, microwaves, more couches, an exercise room, and a television. By placing the commuter lounge in the basement of Lohman, commuter students are granted both a quiet room for privacy and as access to other resources they may need throughout the day.
Geyer said the commuter life office was currently working with a local Bed Bath and Beyond to “make it feel a little homelier, and then we’ll kind of see what the demand is like– how frequently is it being used, what commuters are looking for. If it’s getting a lot of use and we need to add some additional space or additional things, that’s definitely something we’ll do. So we’ll make sure there’s an avenue for feedback in terms of items commuters would like to see.”
MaryAnn Smock, sophomore, and Laura Starcher, sophomore, are two commuters who are excited at the prospect of having a designated room for commuters where they can find some peace and quiet.
“I like having a spot to go on campus that’s just for commuters, it’s nice,” said Smock.
“Right, I feel like there’s less of a divide between residential and commuter,” said Starcher.
Not having an adequate space to study or relax in between classes, as well as a stark feeling of division between residential and commuter students are common feelings among many commuter students. With around a third of Capital’s student body being commuters, it is encouraging to see the university taking these strides to give commuter students the resources they need to feel comfortable on campus.
Commuter students wishing to send feedback or suggestions can contact commuter@capital.edu.
