BRITNEY MALONEY
Staff Writer
On-campus apartments will undergo regular cleaning services. Housing officials have recently announced that all campus single resident apartments are being cleaned, including Lovernich, Drescher Campus apartments and F and G blocks of the George Page Residential Community.
The new service will include the cleaning of bathroom floors, counters, sinks, toilets and showers. The kitchen floors also will be cleaned.
According to Director of Housing Jim Brock, the idea to clean the apartments has been one that housing officials have been deliberating for several years. The primary reason Pepperdine will begin offering this service is to help protect all of the on-campus facilities, Brock wrote in an e-mail. He said that the new program has nothing to do with the apartments being in bad shape, for they are not in poor shape, but rather the service will ensure that the residences are being properly maintained.
“We know that some residents are more inclined to clean than others,” Brock said. “Because of busy schedules, there are times when cleaning isn’t a top priority and we recognize that. If a shower isn’t cleaned all semester, that negatively impacts the facility. That is what we want to guard against.”
In addition, Brock said that another factor that played a vital role in the prompting of the cleaning service was the assurance that students will have a good on-campus experience.
According to housing officials, this is one way to improve the residential community.
Stacy Rothberg, associate dean of Housing and Community Living, agreed with Brock.
“This is an important service we would like to provide for our community and students,” Rothberg said.
In response to the announcement, the housing office was bombarded with enthusiastic e-mails.
Not all students are not entirely thrilled with the idea, however.
“A couple of weeks ago we were doing fine,” senior Mark Baucum said. “Now that they clean … it’s not as much ours … we lost something by having them.”
He can foresee future benefits, however, and thinks it is overall a good idea.
“It’s a great idea,” he said. “It’s a proactive approach to keeping up facilities.”
Senior Carrie Miller agreed that it is a good idea.
“In the long run it will keep apartments maintained,” she said. “If they’re cleaned all year long, they won’t get gross.”
Miller is excited about the change.
“I think it’s a lot nicer,” she said. “It’s nice to have someone clean it.”
As of Sept. 15, most apartments have already been cleaned twice. Brock summed up the issue by saying, “We believe that by our providing housekeeping, we are improving the Pepperdine community.”
09-15-2005