Exhausted students may soon be in luck. Feds is working on a new project that will make sleeping space available for use at the SLC, though the exact details of the space have yet to be determined. </p>
“It’s hard to speak about details … we have to book a room, we have to figure out what it is that students are going to be napping on, because obviously we can’t have tables and desks,” said Maaz Yasin, VP internal of Feds. The process of identifying exactly what will become temporary bedding for students is still ongoing, although one possibility is using beanbags.
Yasin later described this as a “temporary initiative.” The space is planned to be available for students this term during wrap-up week and then again during exam time, although Yasin predicts a high likelihood that that the project won’t be finalized until next semester.
“We have only three to four weeks to make it happen. It’s sort of short notice,” said Yasin, further adding that this initiative will be pressed for this term, but will also be made available in the future depending on student interest. “It’s in its early stages, and it could very well be possible that we’re not able to do it this term, and we might have to look into it for next term.”
Another challenge in organizing this space will be maintenance of cleanliness and security. With flu season underway, temporary bedding services may become a hotspot for infection, and implementing this service will demand an effective and dependable system for cleanliness.
“Part of the reason why this isn’t a done deal, part of the reason why it’s not completely finalized is because if we’re going to do it, we want to make sure that we are maintaining the highest standards of safety and hygiene. I don’t know right now what that looks like,” said Yasin. A possible solution, Yasin mentioned, is tasking volunteers with cleanup like wiping down sleeping areas, although the type of cleanup may depend ultimately on the type of material used for sleeping. “Custodial staff won’t be employed in the process,” said Yasin.
Similarly, safety standards will be determined once a location for this service is finalized.
“Once we know what the room looks like, we would be able to better figure out how we can ensure safety of belongings. Until that happens, it’s really hard for me to speculate about lockers or anything of that [sort],” said Yasin.
While not all details have been determined, Yasin expects the space to be “nice and comfortable, temperature is good, and it’s relatively dark, where there’s not a lot of sounds.” Holding capacity has yet to be determined.
