By Toma Lynn Smith
Commuter Student Services, located in room 105 of Davidson Hall, is set up to service the needs of the 17,000 students who commute to the University of Louisville everyday. The facility offers a computer lab, a lounge with sofas and a TV, and tables for studying or eating.
Despite this fact, several in the student body say they have very little knowledge of the facility.
Junior Pan-African studies major Angel Barber said that she mostly uses Ekstrom library or the main office of REACH for her academic needs such as computer access. She has never used CSS during her college years at U of L. ?
Junior Grace Miller, whose major is undecided, said she started to attend U of L in 2004, and didn’t learn about CSS until 2006.
Miller also said that, compared to places like Ekstrom library or the North Computer Lab in the College of business, the center accommodates her needs better.
“It’s more accessible in being able to get a computer [and] getting things done,” Miller said. She also said that she wished the facility would be advertised better.
CSS Director Barbara King seconded this, saying that CSS is there to “create a sense of community.” CSS has made efforts to get the word out about their services. They send out the “News from Commuter Student Services” newsletter each Thursday which provides its hours and services.
However, Tim Moore, U of L’s student activities director since August 2007, placed much more of an emphasis on the students’ role in CSS, saying that students need to be more aware of the services which are available to them.
King said one reason why students may not know about CSS is because of its location. She feels that those from the Speed School or living on the west side of campus may find the location of the center inconvenient.
“The ideal situation would be to have something like this available in each building that has high level of student traffic,” King said. “As far as I know, there are no plans for the university to do this.”
Sophomore early elementary education major Dorcea Brown said that the location does figure in to her decision to use the facility.
She said that she only one class in that part of campus and, because of other options, she does not need to use the center. She did say that she knows several of her commuter friends do utilize the facility though.
King said that CSS has made efforts to accommodate a broader range of students though. In fall of 2007, CSS changed their hours in order to accommodate students who have both evening and day time classes.
According to King, roughly 450 to 500 students use CSS each weekday during the fall and spring semesters.
King’s colleague, Jan Rayburn, Senior Program Coordinator of CSS, said that their goal is to help offer an inviting environment at U of L by offering students the help of faculty and resources.
