There are a few—some might say many— widely held sources of complaints amongst Jewell’s student body; whether it is the persistently inconsistent, yet dependably uncomfortable, building temperatures or the inconvenient lack of parking. Amidst these things we all care to complain about are laundry services and etiquette. I asked a few students about their experiences.

Not long ago, an unnamed senior experienced what some would call, or at least the senior would, a blatant disregard for basic laundry room etiquette. After placing her clothes in the Melrose dormitory washers, she left her dryer balls on each washer lid with the intent of conveniently placing them with each load once they were moved to a dryer. However, a fellow Melrose resident had other plans. The senior returned promptly, a short thirty-five minutes later, to find her dryer balls missing.

The senior, a force to not be reckoned with, waited to see who the culprit was. It did not take long before the culprit revealed themselves. The culprit denied knowing how the dryer balls wound up in their laundry. However, the senior remains convinced that the dryer balls were taken and used by the culprit and not a mysterious third party. Understandably, the senior does not find the idea of a random havoc inducing laundry room distuber convincing.

When asked about her thoughts on appropriate laundry room etiquette, the senior responded, “As a rule, don’t touch other people’s stuff.” She did, however, add a few further considerations: “Because laundry is free, I think it’s okay to move someone’s clothes from the dryers into the washers after waiting five to 10 minutes. It also makes sense to me to move laundry out of the dryers. If you really don’t want people to touch your stuff, do what I do and make sure to move your laundry soon after it is done.” The senior further emphasized, “If it’s not to free up washers or dryers, leave other people’s things alone.”

Proper laundry room etiquette is a topic that students often discuss. Students tend to fall on two sides of the issue. On the one hand, many students argue residents should remove their own laundry within the five to 10 minute window, give or take a few minutes. It’s your stuff, you are responsible for it, or so the argument goes. Other’s adopt the position offered by the previously mentioned senior. As college students, we all have busy lives. It’s understandable if a resident forgets their laundry or does not return to move it for a while. Laundry is free, so it’s not much of an inconvenience for others to move laundry from washers to dryers. However, residents should not take offense if their laundry is moved after five to 10 minutes.

Besides appropriate laundry room behavior, students also have serious complaints about laundry services. Sophomore Kandace Gill notes, “Machines are often broken or occupied, so I usually go off of campus to the laundromat to avoid any issues.” While students enjoy free services on campus, they come with several problems. Many students complain of the lack of washers and dryers available. Yet, the biggest inconvenience is probably the weak dryers. It often takes two to three cycles to fully dry clothes, even when students only partially fill dryers.

To mitigate these problems, students have devised a few coping mechanisms. Some, like Gill, do their laundry off campus either at parents’ houses or at other locations. Some students do laundry at less busy times, such as on Sunday mornings when most students choose to sleep in. To navigate around drying problems, many students choose to air dry their damp clothes when one dryer cycle is not enough.

One of the perks of going to Jewell is free laundry. Undeniably, inappropriate laundry room behavior and recent service issues take a bit of the shine off of the deal. With a shift to more thoughtful laundry room etiquette and a few maintenance repairs, laundry would be one less topic for Jewell students to complain about.

The rejuvenated dorm building was officially unveiled by college President, Dr. Elizabeth MacLeod Walls at a ribbon cutting ceremony Aug. 17 and will be home to approximately 100 first-year students this year.

The building was closed for the entire 2017 to 2018 academic year to facilitate renovations and minimize the impact the construction would have on students. During that time a comprehensive remodeling was completed in all of the living spaces and communal areas.

These changes occurred shortly after the dorm’s restrooms, shower facilities and lighting systems were renovated in the summer of 2016.

Design and construction was carried out by Gould Evans Architects and McCownGordon Construction, as well as Jewell’s own facilities team. Donors included the Mathes Family, Shirley J. Pryor and the Sunderland Foundation.

Though the final cost of the project is unknown, the renovations were expected to cost around $3.5 million.

MacLeod Walls noted the necessity of this dorm remodel.

“Our first-year residence halls need to be renovated or reconfigured in order for Jewell to keep pace with incoming students’ expectations,” said MacLeod Walls. “I also believe that living in a comfortable, beautiful space is conducive to learning and happiness.”

College President, Dr. MacLeod Walls cuts the ribbon outside of Mathes Hall alongside donors Mark Mathes, Karen Rahter Mathes and Shirley J. Pryor at the unveiling ceremony on Aug. 17.

The dorm was renamed Mathes Hall after the lead donors of the project: Mark Mathes ’79 and Karen Rahter Mathes ’80. Similarly,  the building’s main lobby was named The Shirley J. Pryor Student Commons, playfully referred to by committee members as “Shirley’s Temple.”

In addition to the updates to existing features, students can look forward to many new amenities.

Sydney Cotton, resident director of Mathes Hall, noted what she believes students have to look forward to while living in this newly renovated space.

“The renovation of the residence hall included several aspects first-years can look forward to, including updated lounges that are comfortable and help promote community, brand new room furniture that does not require tools to loft beds and several study areas,” said Cotton.

In addition to the communal living spaces and new furniture, the entire interior of the building was redone, including carpet, drywall, paint and LED lighting.

Several former residents and resident assistants of Ely Hall were involved in the planning and design aspect of the new dorm. These individuals represented the student perspective in the redesign process.

Student input was particularly valued when evaluating what aspects of the building to preserve and what additions to include.

Those students included on the design team were Seki Anderson, Jacob Dice, Jeremy Hofman, Jesse Lundervold,  Margaret Miles, Dalton Nelson, Spencer Ruwe, Macy Tush,  Micah Williams and Elliott Yoakum.

Many staff members were included in the design decision making. Those staff members were Stephany Guest in facilities; Susan Tideman, Susan Arbo and Clark Morris from advancement; Nathan Wyman from theatre and Ernie Stufflebean from residence life.

Though the name of the dorm has been changed to Mathes Hall, students need not worry about the Ely name being forgotten on campus. Ernie Stufflebean, associate dean of students and director of residence life, assured The Hilltop Monitor reporters that the Ely name will live on.

“The name Lewis B. Ely has been synonymous with Jewell campus housing since the first residence hall [was] built in 1880. The original Ely Hall stood on the north side of Jewell Hall, which is now the open Quad between Jewell and Gano. [What is] now Mathes Hall, was named Ely when it first opened in 1910. The namesake continues as Ely Commons, the new name for the entire first-year residential complex,” said Stufflebean.

Spencer Ruwe, junior music performance, nonprofit leadership and applied critical thought and inquiry student, as well as resident assistant in Mathes Hall, added what he is most excited about for the new year in Mathes.

“Ely/Mathes has always been an amazing residence hall that has community spaces that are unmatched by any other hall on campus,” said Ruwe. “But with the new renovation, it will encourage that communal feeling even more, and I can already feel [Mathes] becoming one big family.”

Photos by Sofia Arthurs-Schoppe.