Quality of life changes around campus continue to be completed, from lighting around campus being improved to the repair of concrete in areas around Lee Wicker and Carroll Hall. However, major projects, like the remediation and renovation of Byrnes auditorium, plumbing, ventilation and door locks in Richardson and moisture and leaks in residence halls continue only in the design and preparation phases.
WiFi issues, mold and bugs in dorms continue to be a problem for students according to a survey conducted on the Johnsonian’s Instagram. Student activist organization WU Students for Change also included issues like mold in its list of demands from the Dec. 3 protest.
Despite a complete replacement of the WiFi infrastructure in Phelps Hall, other buildings on campus are still struggling with WiFi issues.
“The next [residence hall to get a WiFi infrastructure update] is Courtyard. We have a quote, but there is a thing with funding. Courtyard is like a separate enterprise, so we’re having to juggle a few things,” Patrice Bruneau, assistant vice president for Computing and Information Technology, said. “All the other residence halls will require major cabling, so we can’t do it during the regular year.”
WiFi in non-residence hall buildings on campus could start soon, Bruneau said.
“So other than the residence halls, we’re looking at academic buildings, and Rutledge seems to be the top priority right now. And we’re in the design phase. So there’s a project manager from Colombia, that’s looking into it, and planning all that,” Bruneau said. “That would be something we could do. It will require some wiring, but I think we can squeeze in between classes, or like on Fridays, Saturdays sort of timeframes, hopefully anyway, and do some work when there’s nobody or very few people in the building. And then try to do it before the end of the school year.”
Student activists are also pushing for an increased number of security cameras on campus. Currently, Bruneau said they are updating the ones they have.
“So within a few months, knock on wood, we will have all the security cameras refreshed, definitely the residence halls, then we’ll move on to academic buildings, and then the outside areas like parking lots and things. So that’s a project that’s ongoing. And if we have any issues, it’ll be logistics, you know, supply chain,” Bruneau said.
The most recent WU Students for Change list of demands includes functioning blue lights, which Bruneau said was not on his radar until the group started advocating for their repair.
“I’m looking at replacing the ones that don’t work anymore, don’t work reliably,” Bruneau said. “A contractor has been on campus, surveyed and is working on a list of what we can replace with what. And so that will include the blue lights. This is definitely in response to the students’ concerns.”
