Ohio University Student Senate met Wednesday evening and received a presentation from Housing and Residence Life about student well-being and future plans.
Jneanne Hacker, the executive director for Housing and Residence Life, gave the presentation and spoke on the importance of strategizing where new structures are built and the impact they have on campus.
“As we start thinking about new developments, we want to make sure that we protect that sense of neighborhoods amongst the greens,” Hacker said.
Hacker moved to discuss the various campaigns at OU, such as the Bobcat Living Experience, Make Respect Visible and most recently, THRiVE, a sister campaign to Make Respect Visible.
Hacker said the purpose of these various campaigns is to make for a more inclusive university experience that students would get more out of, and described the importance of wellbeing.
To conclude the presentation, Hacker discussed the plans the department has laid out for the future, such as plans to remove and replace the windows in Washington Hall this December.
“For some demolitions, we know that we will lose 400 of 800 of our single spaces… so it’s going to be important that we consider any capital construction,” Hacker said.
Hacker then opened the floor to questions from Senate members.
Questions were raised about potentially giving Resident Advisers and other Housing and Residence Life employees a wage increase in light of other OU departments receiving pay raises, as well as the minimum wage increase taking effect next January.
Concerns were also raised about the $100 Bobcat Cash reward for RAs working both nights of Halloween weekend. Concerns centered around the reward being Bobcat Cash rather than USD, and also how it is taxed as income.
Hacker said that the Bobcat Cash is considered as gratitude rather than compensation. Housing and Residence Life will consider making changes to the nature of this later.
Questions closed with concerns about mold in residence halls.
“Mold exists in every structure, at every institution, in every home,” Hacker said.
She said Housing and Residence Life tries to remedy mold buildup by suggesting certain temperatures to maintain in dorm rooms, citing condensation as a result of conflicting temperatures in nearby rooms as a potential cause for mold.
Hacker said there are contractors that come in and do regular cleans to prevent mold buildup and get rid of any existing mold.
“There are times in which our team will go in and they will see that stuff that students think is mold and it’s not,” Hacker said. “They will clean that space… because we want to ensure students are comfortable within their space.”
Following the presentation and questioning, Student Senate moved to discuss spending, a bill supporting a policy change and filled more vacant positions.
