There is no shortage of study spaces on Colgate University’s campus. From Case Library to Cooley Science Library, from the Olin Hall lobby to Bernstein Hall, we Colgate students have a broad array of places to plow through our readings and essays. But what about spaces just for students to socialize and meet new peers?
Sure, one might say that the dining halls are social spaces, but do we not deserve spaces separate from where we eat? One could even make the argument that the Coop is a study space as well as a dining hall due to the number of people who choose to study in the fireplace and media rooms. However, this dual-use of space makes students afraid to indulge in social activities for fear that they may be disturbing their peers who are trying to get work done. We need spaces that are specifically designed for students to catch up with a few friends or sit around and have a cup of coffee with significant others.
What are the benefits of creating new social spaces, you may ask? Is it worth the financial investment? Would making a new social space take away from necessary resources? I believe social spaces are entirely necessary and their positive impact will have a ripple effect across campus. Socialization is part of human well-being. By spending time with friends, we are prioritizing our mental health so that academic, athletic and extracurricular responsibilities feel less daunting. While socialization is plentiful on campus in terms of nightlife, daytime social opportunities are limited. This is especially true for underclassmen; their social interactions are limited to grabbing dinner with friends at Frank or chatting in a crowded dorm room.
While there is nothing inherently wrong with these spaces, they are not distinguishable from spaces that are necessary for our physical needs such as eating and sleeping. However, I see social spaces supporting the functions of dining and residence halls in promoting our overall wellness, leading to healthier, happier students. While the idea of designing a purely social space may sound like a multimillion-dollar project, its potential benefits for the Colgate student body are too great to be ignored.
In addition to helping students maintain current friendships, creating distinct social spaces could help students cultivate new ones. These social spaces could be an opportunity to unite all of the different social factions here at Colgate. I wrote another ‘Gate Take last semester for the Maroon-News about how Colgate students need to attend more university-sponsored talks. One of the main explanations I outlined as to why attendance is low is that the advertising for these events is often limited to exclusive groups or departments on campus. If there was one space where students could gather, this problem might be greatly reduced if these event schedules were made accessible there, thus encouraging greater community involvement on campus. Social spaces could also be used for game nights, movie screenings and other events that are sometimes held on campus but often not in a consistent location accessible to all students or at a set time. Social spaces are a great way to encourage students to broaden their social horizons and encourage the formation of new relationships.
While I do believe that at least one exclusively social space is an absolute necessity, I’m not unrealistic about the time, money and planning required to make that happen. One solution I propose is that we take a space that is currently used for academic or extracurricular purposes and turn it into a social space. For instance, we could transform the Coop media room into a space for students to relax and hang out with friends. While it already is a social space to some extent, the inconsistent furniture and occasional formal events held there make it fall short of the criteria I mentioned throughout this article. By adding comfortable furniture, leaving fun activities such as card decks in the room and moving some of the events (such as pop-ups and blood drives) to other spaces around campus, this would be possible. This is not the only space where my idea could be applied; it is merely one suggestion to have students and faculty consider the possibility of transforming one widely-used academic space into a wholly social one.
As students, we need at least one space to gather together to destress and socialize. This space would strengthen current relationships and lend itself to forging new ones, all while prioritizing a positive mental health amongst the student body. It is time for Colgate to make the investment for its students and create exclusively social spaces.
