This year’s senior gift is going toward renovation in the Union.
After hearing suggestions from students, Florence Fernandez, ASUU senior class president, chose to designate the annual $30,000 to creating a “sanctuary room,” called parlor C, in the student Union.
“It is for people to decompress and relax and meditate in any way that seems right for them,” Fernandez said.
She came up with the concept after working with the U’s Center for Student Wellness this year.
“We wanted to focus on the mental wellness,” she said. “A lot of studies are out currently about stress and how high stress levels in students are, and we want to provide a space for them to collect themselves and go on with their day without having to worry about too may things.”
The total cost of the new meditation room will be roughly $60,000, with the Union matching the senior class gift. Fernandez said the addition will fit in nicely with other plans for renovating the building.
“We want a bigger and better Union, and the meditation center will be a permanent space even with the new building that is hopefully coming,” she said.
Celeste Gearhart a senior in nursing, isn’t keen on the idea.
“I think it is a strange thing to put money into,” she said. “Maybe there could be better uses for money, such as giving it to student clubs or by updating older buildings or make new parking. I think that the students and incoming students would prefer having more parking spots then a place to chill.”
Fernandez said construction will likely be finished in a year, after an initial planning period.
@JulianneSkrivan