Since the Georgetown University Student Association’s endowment commission began accepting proposals on Mar. 16, the improvement of on-campus space has emerged as a common theme in suggested uses for the of $3.4 million available due to last semester’s passage of Student Activities Fee Endowment reform.
“I think student space is going to be a theme in this,” Colton Malkerson (COL ’13), a GUSA senator and the Finance and Appropriation Committee’s representative on the commission.
Jesse Colligan (SFS ‘14) submitted a proposal to paint murals in locations around campus, such as the Canal Road entrance or the wall under the Yates Field House. According to Colligan, a commission with both University and professional artists could oversee the creation of the murals.
“I sometimes find that the campus has a very gray, dull, sterilized, brick/stone look to it—both inside and outside,” he wrote in his proposal.
Lauinger Library administrators held an open meeting of their own on Tuesday to gather student input before they draft their own proposal. The most common topics at the meeting, which was attended by approximately 15 students and library employees, were the need for more power outlets, more comfortable furniture, and a less “basement-like” feel.
Library administrators, who conceded that the $150 million renovation of Lauinger described in the 2010 Campus Plan is not in their immediate future, hope to make incremental changes. However, some are still concerned about the potential cost.
“Replacing all the furniture in the entire building would take up one fifth of the entire endowment,” said Will Wheeler, head of research and instruction in Lauinger.
Wheeler urged precision in the library’s potential changes. He will lead a small-scale study on how library facilities are used beginning this spring and continuing into the fall semester. Wheeler already plans to change the third floor by closing off the circulation desk to allow students in the space behind it and replacing half of the reference materials with additional computer workstations.
Not all proposals are space-focused, though. A proposal submitted by Tierra Evans (COL ’14) and Gabrella Ehioghiren (COL ’13), called for the creation of an annual homecoming parade to foster a sense of community on campus. Although some students objected to its effect on student life, Carolyn Chambers (COL ‘11) argued that the creation of new, annual tradition would impact students.
“Everybody remembers Georgetown Day,” Chambers said. “Everybody remembers Homecoming.”
The desire for a centralized student space was a chief concern of most proposals though, with many arguing that the proposed renovations to the New South lounge may not meet student needs due to the dormitory’s location. Matt Stoller (COL ‘08) is leading a campaign to resurrect the Healy Pub, a student-run bar that operated on campus for 14 years before closing because of financial difficulties caused by University-mandated dry nights. Stoller’s proposal, entitled “Bring Back Healy Pub,” cited a 2010 report on student space as well as the success of The Cambridge Queen’s Head Pub, a recently built, student-run bar at Harvard University.
“[The proposal suggests] bringing back Healy Pub as a dignified and student-run gathering place in Healy basement of historical character where students can study and enjoy food, drinks and one another’s company,” reads a message on the group’s website.
Since launching its campaign on Wednesday, Bring Back Healy Pub has found a strong base of public support: more than 1,250 people have already joined a Facebook group that supports the proposal.
“Almost everyone I talk to on campus, as well as many alumni, seem to be behind this idea,” Fitz Lufkin (COL ‘11), a signatory on the proposal, wrote in an email. “Hopefully, the University will realize what an opportunity it has to unite the campus and alumni communities with this project. Also, I would hope that when a group of students and alumni are thinking of writing a $3.4 million check, the University will listen.”
