The 24-hour study center in the USU was a ghost town

August 25 was not only the first day of the Cal State Long Beach 2014 Fall semester, but it also marked the opening of the 24-hour study room in the University Student Union. I went to watch.

When I arrived at the West Wing of the USU at 11:00 p.m., there was not too much going on. There was one gentleman sitting at a desk outside the room studying, and three more students inside. As the student worked, the custodian came though with the vacuum, which was the only sound in the whole building.

As I sat and observed, three people swept in. Two were members of the Associated Student Inc.; USU Building Operations Manager Pamela Lewis was the third. Lewis is the supervisor of the 24-hour study room.

She quickly set up the ASI students with a device hooked up to a computer to swipe ID’s and gave them a run down of what was on their screen. I did hear her say, “here is inside room 201, here’s the waiting room, and here’s the hallway,” which leads me to believe that there have been security systems set up inside the West Wing for increased security.

Once the 24-hour study room opens, anyone inside the building must come check in at the front. People working inside, who are not current students, such as alumni or guests collaborating on projects, are not allowed inside. I observed this first-hand when two of the three students studying, who were alumni, were asked to leave. I was also asked to leave eventually because I was with a student who did not go to CSULB.

The two students who run the front desk are on duty from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Without a doubt, the 24-hour study room is a great new tool for students who live on or around campus. It is a problem for commuters who take the freeway because the entrance to the 22  freeway is closed.

Though there were not many students using the room last night – on average, three at a time – I think that during midterms this room will be packed. With only 12 chairs around one large table, it could get crowded quickly. It seems as though it would be more beneficial to have multiple small desks around the perimeter of the room with partitions.

One excellent feature of the 24-hour study area is two phone charging stations located in the lobby. They are equipped with cords for multiple generations of Iphones and androids.

The 24-hour study area was made possible by the Associated Students Inc. who approved a student fee increase of $16 last February. This fee along with a 3.5 percent increase of student enrollment covers the cost of the 24-hour study room. Hopefully, the room will be a success and become a permanent part of the USU.