College career is one of the most important phases of our lives. These four years in college may shape the entire course of our future lives, thus, one should stay focused to get the most out of his college experiences. This is why I propose that University of South Alabama should review operating hours of the student library and the dining center and make them assessable on a 24-hours basis to enhance the overall college experience of its students. This proposal should be considered on a priority basis because the economic, academic, and social benefits to different stakeholders including students may greatly exceed any potential costs.
Like any other academic institution of higher education, University of South Alabama has a responsibility to take every reasonable measure to enhance the learning environment for students. One cannot overstate the importance of library access when it comes to overall learning. In fact, a research study found that use of library resources has a direct co-relation with students’ retention rates and academic success (The Association of College and Research Libraries). This finding is not surprising because libraries do not only influence students to consult more academic and research resources but also provide them with an ideal environment to study. As a student myself, I know this from personal experiences because distractions such as noise and digital gadgets can be avoided in a library environment but one may not have that much luck in even a home environment. It is not uncommon for students to live with roommates and in addition, college dorms as well as off-campus housing facilities rarely exist in quiet settings.
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Library should also be assessable 24-hours because it will increase University of South Alabama’s appeal to prospective students, especially those with impressive grades at high school level. Students who are particularly focused on maintaining high GPAs carefully evaluate the academic resources provided by a university they may be considering and the factor that library hours are quite limited may send the wrong message.
Just as extending library hours will yield numerous benefits for the university students, making dining center available 24-hours will also provide several economic and social benefits. First of all, it may help improve the security environment for students. University of South Alabama is located in Mobile which has one of the highest crime rates in America, at 54 per one thousand residents (Neighborhood Scout). Students often crave for food during uncommon hours such as late night and lack of options on campus such as a closed dining center leave them with little choice but to go off-campus. By making dining center accessible 24-hours, students may be influenced to skip off-campus visits in favor of on-campus dining center which will reduce their risk of becoming a crime victim. This is important because just as university is responsible for providing an ideal learning environment, it also has a responsibility to ensure maximum security of its students.
Obesity crisis is a serious issue in America and academic institutions like high schools and colleges can play an important role in combating obesity crisis. The university has a unique opportunity to promote healthier dieting habits through its dining center. The university can exert greater control over what students eat in its dining center as compared to what they may eat at off-campus food facilities. University can show students healthy food can be delicious and habits formed through eating at the university dining center may benefit them for the rest of their lives.
The critics of my proposal may argue that the economic costs of keeping library and dining center open for extended hours may be too high and it will be a challenge for a public university like University of South Alabama. The critics are not wrong that additional costs may be involved but one cannot evaluate the feasibility of a course of action without considering its benefits as well.
Keeping library opened at evening and night hours doesn’t require the same level of staff expenditure as it does during busier hours when the school is in session. Moreover, keeping library opened for extended hours may increase student enrollment and increase tuition revenue. In addition, not all social and economic benefits are measurable such as more students completing college or graduating with better grades which mean they will earn more during their lifetime and also pay more taxes to the state and national governments. As far as the cost of dining center is concerned, extended hours will also help improve total revenue which may easily exceed additional costs. After operating hours of a coffee shop at the University of Pennsylvania were extended, its total revenue increased by 3 percent. There is a reason colleges such as University of Pennsylvania have been increasing on-campus dining options for students, even inviting private companies such as Starbucks to operate facilities, because dining facilities form an attractive revenue stream (Stinson).
Operating library and dining center for extended hours will naturally increase operating costs but they will be easily exceeded by direct and indirect economic and social benefits. First of all, student retention rate and average grades may improve. The university may also attract more top-ranked high school students. The students will also feel safer because they would have dining options on campus round-the-clock. In addition, university will also gain a valuable opportunity to promote healthier dining habits among its students.
- Neighborhood Scout. Crime rates for Mobile, AL. 1 December 2014
- Stinson, Sonya. Moneymaking Meals. March 2013. 1 December 2014
- The Association of College and Research Libraries. Using the Library Makes a Difference. 30 December 2014. 1 December 2014
