By Laken Franchetti, Editor-in-Chief
Director of Student Activities & Greek Life Jon Allen and Associate Vice President of Facilities Planning & Management Jim Biesecker sent an email to students on Thursday detailing the new social spaces coming to Plank Basement.
The spaces come after an initiative to improve event and informal spaces on campus for students. In the spring of 2023, a group of students were brought together to review the current social spaces and identify how such could be improved.
“One of the outcomes of this group was a re-envisioning of some spaces in Plank Basement and how they could be repurposed to provide more activities and social offerings for students,” the email said.
These changes and new spaces will be implemented over the next few weeks. The changes include an arcade-themed room containing arcade machines and a PlayStation, a board game and tabletop game room and a craft room with four inclined art desks and free supplies. There will also be a mini movie theater with a sound system, theater-style reclining chairs and a large screen tv that students can plug streaming devices into.
In partnership with Listeners & Performers, the college is also creating a Creativity Lounge where students can express themselves in creative forms. Students are welcome to bring their own instruments to the space, or they can work with Listeners & Performers to borrow musical equipment.
More outdoor activities such as Spikeball, corn hole and pickle ball will also be offered to students for use on Memorial Field and other outdoor spaces. An Outdoor Seating Area between Plank and Memorial Field will also be created, and this space will have fire pits and chairs that have been relocated from Stine Lake while that space is closed for renovations.
“We do expect Stine Lake to reopen in November at which time we will move the fire pits and chairs back,” Allen and Biesecker said. “Based on the use of the space, we may permanently add chairs, fire pits, and other equipment to the grassy area near Plank after everything has been returned to Stine Lake.”
Allen and Biesecker shared that the college will need feedback to find out if this initiative will be a successful. If students have ideas about what could be added to or what should be removed from the spaces, the Plank Basement Social Spaces Feedback Form can be used to provide feedback. QR codes to this form will also be posted in Plank Basement.
“We hope you enjoy the changes we are making to Plank Basement and we look forward to hearing from you about how we can continue to provide fun social spaces for students,” the email closed.
