Newspapers / Montreat College Student Newspaper / Feb. 19, 2016, edition 1 / Page 1
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/9i/i0m’i/2OI6 T^ve Mo/itmt . 2SF52 Residence Hall Infrastructure Issues Continue By Tyler Lee Leaking roofs continue to plague residential living, recently relocating four students from their rooms. Physical upgrades on Howerton, one of the older two dorms on campus, were originally set to occur during the smiimer of 2015; however, due to lack of funding, plans for the renovations never moved beyond the repair of the lobby. Though repairs to the Quads and other maintenance issues of Howerton are reportedly intended to start over the sumnier, funding for this project has not shown up in recent years, and the Quads are only a part of the problem. One key recent issue has been the dorm’s leaking roof, as Howerton residents Thomas Kopp and Mordecai How ard experienced. They first noticed the issue back in the fall; it did not become a real problem until they returned from Christmas break. “We told maintenance in October and they said that they could not fix it because of severe roof damage,” Kopp said. “They said a roofer would be on campus the next day to fix the roof. I saw his truck so 1 knew he was actually on campus but obviously the roof did not get fixed. Over Christmas break, appaiently it rained a lot and flooded the room damaging a few of our things and ultimately making it unlivable.” Kopp and Howard were then relocated to a smaller room, one without a private batlnoom. Not only this, but Kopp describes the ends of the third floor hallway as being “unlivable”, stating that he thinks the leakage is spreading towaid the middle of the hall. “I believe that if the roof had been fixed when it was supposed to, then this would not have happened,” Kopp said. “The situation could have been handled well but was not. However, as significant as these issues are, the chief setback arises from the direction of funding for the college s projects. The athletic complex and remodel of McAlister Fitness Center, for example, were funded by monumen tal donations from specific sources. These projects are not being ignored, as the college recently revealed an already-underway renovation plan m a letter from Board of Trustees chairman William Haynes. “ ... we have identified the next campus improvement priorities as the renovation of McLeod Hall and a partial renovation of Howerton Residence Hall, focused primarily on refurbishing eight rooms which have been out of service,” Haynes said in the letter. “These will be projects #7 and M in the ongoing string ot campus improve ments that began with the renovation of Anderson Hall in 2014 and has included the construction of the Louan Gideon Theatre, the renovation of Howerton Dining Hall and McAlister Fitness Center, the new bathrooms in Gaither Hall, and the new $2 million athletic complex on the Black Mountain campus. As these last two projects near completion, we have identified McLeod and Howerton as next in line. We need to keep the momentum go ing on campus improvements.” ■ -c Though the work on Howerton will soon occur, the dorm is not the only residence hall with significant structural issues, as McGregor has recently shown roof damage of its own. Junior Melissa McArtor describes seeing a yel low spot one day on her and Margaret Coe’s ceiling, which suddenly transformed into a leaking, messy problem. “The next day we had yellow goop dripping into our closet,” McArtor said. “We contacted Becky and Mainte nance immediately. Becky came to inspect the situation very promptly. They had a guy up on the roof within the week to assess the damage. Margaret and I took the initiative to ask to be moved to Anderson, otherwise I am sure they would have had ns remain in McGregor.” With Montreat having a record enrollment of 218 first-time freshmen and transfer students this past fall (the highest enrollment since 1986), the urgency of fixing these issues intensifies. When asked if these dorm issues have been affecting the admissions process, the Admissions Office offered a general statement of their excitement about the ongoing renovations and upgrades on campus, as well as for the residence halls in the months and years Montreat College is in a mniaround period, yet change takes time. In the meantime, when hearing Kopp’s and MeArtor’s stories, several important questions arise, ff students are being affected by these issues, aie these concerns visible to prospective sUidents? With buckets spread throughout Howerton’s hallways catching the roof leakage, aie the students applying for this college (who will be paying an estimated $4,000 a year to live in these dorms), seeing these problems firsthand? These questions are only the beginning of those the college needs to ask before the fall semester, and with sum mer quickly approaching, the jnestinnsJ^come increasin|;lv pressing. Featured SGA Member Name: Akira Shavers Year. Senior Major: Cybersecurity Position: Vice President Favorite accomplish while on SGA: Working with the clubs and ensuring they have eveiything needed to succeed. SGA Update The Student Government Association at Montreat Col lege is excited about the opportunities awaiting stu dents this spring semester. Many of you may wonder what the SGA plans to work on this semester, and we wanted to take a few moments to shaie what we are doing. After having a record enrollment in the fall, many students have made it known to us that finding ad equate parking is an issue around campus. Tn response we have formed a committee, made up of your elected representatives, to begin brainstorming and researching ideas on how to maximize parking on our small cam pus, We realize that, at the bare minimum, the parking lots need to be repainted to prevent accidents around the dorms. We hope to have those issues resolved soon. We also want to provide many more opportunities in addition to the project we are working on. As always, we will be holding Week of Encouragement, an op portunity for you to write supportive notes to friends, staff and faculty. Another SGA-sponsored event will be the annual Week of Prayer, a time of solitude, prayer and thanks. And, of course, our end of the semester Bonfire will be held. In addition, we have approved several student clubs that range across all spectrums of student life. We es pecially encourage you to check out the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, which is a group that meets weekly for a time of fellowship and worship for all students. If you aie looking for another opportunity to grow spiritually, try out bodyGod. BodyGod takes devotions, nutrition and physical exercise to create a new way of maintaining your health. Another club that includes physical activity is the Basketball Club that plays pickup ball in the gym on most Tuesday and Thursday nights. Or try the Outdoor Adventure Club so that you can take advantage of the beautiful mountains of North Carolina. If you want a quieter and more relaxed atmosphere, try getting involved with the Fight Club, a gaming group that plays various e-games fairly often. There is also the Rock-Stacking Slackers, Improv Acting and Diversity Club. If you aie interested in any joining any of these clubs, either talk to an SGA member or be looking for an email describing these clubs in more detail. If you don’t see a club that you are interested in, contact SGA and we will work with you to start a new club. As you can see, there are many available opportunities for you to get involved with and we hope to have more soon. The SGA meets at 10 a.m. every Friday in the SGA/Whetstone office on the first floor of Belk. You are welcome to attend our meetings! Finally, SGA ap plications will be coming out soon, so please take the time to consider running for a position. We are always looking for more interested students who want to make an impact at Montreat. Please let us know if you have any needs that can be addressed. Sincerely, Zeb Whiteside SGA President What do you like ihe most about being on SGA; The diversity that SGA has. We have . 1 - 2— - t-4
Montreat College Student Newspaper
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Feb. 19, 2016, edition 1
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