As a mentor in the new first-year residence hall, The Grove, a lot of people have asked me, “How do you like living in The Grove?” Of course, I express how amazing it is. When I moved into my room this year in The Grove, it felt like a five-star hotel. 

But I can’t think about how amazing it is without thinking about the issues in the other dorms, especially from my own experience in Commons.

At the beginning of the fall 2023 semester, I was severely dehydrated and nearly passed out because when it was 90° outside, my room wasn’t any cooler. I remember when Quinnipiac had to keep the student center open overnight so we could sleep there because the un-air conditioned dorms weren’t safe. And of course, how could I forget the bugs that were in our room last semester?

I have a thermostat in my room in The Grove, while most dorms don’t even have air conditioning. 

I understand we needed a new residence hall, but instead of the little additions like large animals murals on every floor, we could’ve used that money to fix some of the old ones. I may come off sounding entitled to some, but I don’t think making changes to avoid medical emergencies and ensure quality living situations is too big of an ask, especially when the university has the money. It’s not just the new dorm and new academic building that got upgrades. The Bobcat Den also got some upgrades … that nobody asked for. The school should’ve used some of that budget to make improvements that the majority of students were requesting. 

Even small things, like making sure the older dorms’ paper towel holders work, or even getting more accessible beds in Ledges or Commons, because I can’t tell you how many times my ladder almost tipped over randomly and took me with it. 

I’m grateful for where I live now, but it’s not fair to the new students and the upperclassmen who suffer when the university clearly has the funds to fix major issues.