Courtesy of Maude Frederique Lavoie
When thinking about college laundry, there are two types of people: those lucky enough to find both the washer and dryer empty and those who just missed their shot, forced to give up until the next day. Even the lucky ones aren’t out of the clear yet, because behind them there is a line of eager individuals ready to pounce the second that dryer dings double zeros. Laundry is a pain for everyone at Connecticut College, but there is reason to hold out hope.
The simple fact is that Conn is getting bigger. When the Class of 2024 was in its first year, Conn’s population was 1,861. Today, it is 1,995. Conn has been above capacity for years, and the situation is only worsening as students are now housed in basements and common rooms. The lacking laundry system is a consequence of this student squeeze. The main campus is home to a grand total of 59 washing machines and 58 dryers, 54 of which are operational (according to the Laundry Connect website). Including the River Ridge and Winchester Apartments, those totals increase to 78 working washers and 72 working dryers out of 77. This data leads to an average of almost 26 students per washer and 28 per dryer. This statistic is outrageous. Outside of the fact that the dryers often take longer than one run to fully dry clothes, and people may have more than one load to do at a time, these averages make doing laundry throughout the week difficult at best.
Undoubtedly, averages can be misleading. Conn is overpopulated, so gathering a representation of the specific dorms is difficult. The numbers presented are more severe in reality. Assuming all amenities are functional, the most underserved dorm is Branford House, with two of each appliance for a capacity of 84 residents. While Branford does hold the crown for most students sharing a washing machine, Harkness takes the cake for most students sharing a dryer at a whopping 52. These examples only account for shared equipment; special recognition must go out to the buildings without working appliances at all. Winch 11 and Lazarus House don’t have access to a working dryer within their walls. Earth House doesn’t have a washer or dryer at all, its residents use the machines in the 360 Apartments basement.
The Office of Residential Life sent information early in the year about laundry concerns that had been communicated to them. The email essentially stated that the students are responsible for making Automatic Laundry aware of the required repairs. It is a fair request, although the historic inconsistency of service orders has resulted in few students following through. Automatic Laundry is the only entity that knows how many requests it gets for repairs, but the famous bystander effect is likely taking place: “Why should I send the request when 28 other people could do the same thing?” The only current solution is for us to fill out the form and hope for the best.
With this all being said, there is hope for the future. The same email recognized that the machines need to be replaced quicker than usual and that “all” will be replaced over winter break. (Updated information: almost all of the machines will be replaced. One set in each typical residence hall will not be replaced. Over Spring Break, these machines will be replaced with larger models that will be able to do things like hold all of someone’s bedding in one load!) Residential Life is counting the number of washers and dryers in “certain areas” to propose additional ones if they deem it necessary. The email concludes by saying, “If you feel your current area does not have adequate machines for the population please let housing know and we will assess.” Evidently, the school will do its best to provide machines where there are open “hook-ups” that are not being used (i.e. where it is possible).
While laundry isn’t the most pressing issue on campus, it is a simple quality-of-life issue that has gone without any significant remedies. Amenities like these are paid for with tuition, and I assume everyone would prefer getting their money’s worth instead of dealing with a dysfunctional system of unwashed clothes and piles of dumped laundry. That’s why I, and I hope all of you, are looking forward to seeing the results of this work in the spring semester!
