Showerheads prompt focus on student feedback

Media Credit: DAVE STONE/The Eagle Complaints flow over showerheads.

The recent installation of new low-flow showerheads and faucets in AU's dorms has provoked controversy and upset many students, leading the director of Facilities Management to admit making a mistake in not consulting with students before the decision was made. Housing and Dining Programs and Student Government are now working to address and mediate the program's controversy.

"We didn't do this well," Housing and Dining Interim Executive Director Chris Moody said. "We should have involved students, and it would have turned out differently if we did."

AU is working with the United States Green Building Council and participating in the Leadership in Environmental Engineering and Design Existing Building Portfolio Program to make the campus more sustainable and reduce the environmental impact of the school, according to a letter posted on Housing and Dining's Web site to explain the changes.

To get the best possible environmental rating, AU had to reduce its showerheads' output to 2.4 gallons per minute. The old showerheads conformed to the federal limit of 2.5 GPM, set in the Energy Policy Act of 1992. The new showerheads have an output of 1.5 GPM.

Mixed student reactions



Students have expressed anger at the change and that it was made without student input.

"What it is is a miscarriage of justice and a travesty that they did not consult students beforehand and snuck in the dead of afternoon and changed the places where we live," Asher Curry, a senior in the School of International Service, said. "We all felt crushed and betrayed, and I think I can speak on behalf of the entire student body."

Students have also voiced their opinion about the new fixtures.

"It's like trying to bathe in a stagnant creek because the water doesn't come down," Jess Berardinucci, a freshman in SIS, said.

Alan Yuill, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs, said the student body is being hypocritical about conservation by complaining about the new showerheads.

"I think [the showerheads] suck but there's really no reason to complain," Yuill said. "Everybody always complains that this country doesn't do enough to conserve but now that it affects them, they complain."

Director of Facilities Management Willy Suter said he received negative and positive feedback from students.

Continued...

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