Waking up hot and sticky is not what one would expect when moving into their university dorm building. However, for the past three weeks this has been the reality for many Loyola students that live in Francis Hall. With the air conditioning system being down since classes began, students have yet to get a good night’s rest. Some students even had to be relocated to Uptown Hall as a result.
The hot New Orleans weather affects everyone, but Francis students have been struggling with the heat both inside and outside the residence halls.
The problem is frustrating Francis residents, making them feel like the university is neglecting them and ignoring their concerns.
Senior Hannah Bernard, who lives in Francis Hall, says the AC is inconsistent throughout her dorm.
“In my Francis suite, the AC works well in the living room and kitchen, but I can’t say the same for inside my single room. When we close our doors, I and all my roommates experience hot, stuffy rooms at night and wake up sweating,” Bernard said.
At the beginning of the semester, some students heard about potential portable AC units but have not heard anything since. Students have had to spend their own money on electric fans in attempts to combat the hot rooms.
Nicolle Anderson, another senior student living in Francis Hall shared how she has had to compromise her comfort at nights because of the heat.
“I haven’t even been able to sleep under my comforter because of how hot the rooms are,” Anderson said.
With this being an ongoing issue, and with the history of problems in Francis Hall, students are disappointed in residential life for not issuing any statements or offering potential solutions.
“This reminds me of how last year they had us living with extremely cold water for almost a month. If they took that long to fix such a big problem, would they even care about the AC situation?” Anderson said.
Many students feel like the AC problems open the doors for more maintenance issues in the building. The lack of communication from the university only worsens this problem.
“The only information we’ve gotten on the situation has been from our RA, so I would say Res Life is handling the situation as they usually do: avoiding it and the students it affects,” Bernard said.
Additionally, with tuition going up, and room and board being a big expense, students feel like their money is not being put to use where it needs to be.
“I feel like all the money we pay has gone directly to renovations and construction on campus, instead of fixing first what needs to be fixed,” Anderson said.
Students feel like they deserve better than what they are getting from the university.
“We don’t deserve this for how much we pay,” Bernard said.
Residential life has yet to issue a response to the situation.
