ResEd Holds Furniture Showcase for the West Quad Remodel
Possible new dorm room furniture on display. (Nathaniel Swindell/The Gettysburgian)
By Nathaniel Swindell, Staff Writer
The Office of Residential Education (ResEd) held a “furniture review” event on Tuesday and Wednesday that showcased furniture designs to be used in the renovated West Quad. The showcase was held in the CUB Ballroom, where a variety of furniture designs and room layouts were presented for students to vote upon.
“So we are really focused on having the student input for the furniture that we’re using for the study lounges, the common rooms and the bedroom furniture for the newly renovated West Quad halls,” said Associate Director of Residential Education Andrew Hileman. “The reason why we’re asking students to do this is because they’re going to be the ones that use it.This gave us an opportunity to have them come in, actually sit on the chairs, look at some of the bedroom furniture and give us some feedback one-to-one.”
Placed on the table in the front of the event were also several types of fabric with different designs on them, allowing students to pick what colors and patterns would look best.
“We have had the opportunity to just talk to and spend time with students,” said Hileman. “So even in the conversation about the bedroom furniture, we’ve already reached out to the manufacturers to ask about a third option for, like, a side table. As we’re hearing what students are saying, as they’re looking at it, they’re liking it, but they’re not loving it. So, we’ve had a chance to reach out to that group to figure that out.”
The event, overall, proved to be very informative for Residential Education, helping them learn exactly what furniture and materials students preferred and which they didn’t.
“They made us think about other, different functions of the furniture that we weren’t thinking about,” said Hileman. “We came in with some assumptions knowing we wanted a little bit more softer, a little bit more comfortable, a little bit more home-like than maybe some of the common room furniture we have now. And that’s getting confirmed as students sit in some couches and are leaning towards the ones that might feel a bit more like home.”
(Nathaniel Swindell/The Gettysburgian)
