Space in the Marvin Center will now be exclusively reserved for student and University events, the University announced Friday evening.
In the past, outside organizations could pay to reserve rooms in the Marvin Center, but beginning Oct. 1, the space “will be reserved solely for student and University-sponsored events during the academic year,” said University spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard.
“The Marvin Center will no longer be available for use during the academic year by groups not affiliated with the University,” Sherrard said in a news release. “Space rentals in the Marvin Center will be available free of charge for University groups. The Marvin Center’s meeting and event space will continue to be exclusively provided for student-focused activities on weekday evenings after 6 p.m. and on weekends during the academic year.”
The need for additional student space has become a hot button issue over the past few years, as the number of student groups have grown and the amount of student space has stayed the same.
Student Association President Julie Bindelglass said this is something the SA has been advocating for since before she was elected, but she said that she, along with Executive Vice President Jason Lifton, have continued to lobby the University on the issue since they took office in May.
“The Marvin Center is student space. It is our student union, our student center, and so we’re both so ecstatic that this was passed,” she said.
In 2004, the University conducted a study that said Marvin Center space had increasingly been used for non-University events over the course of the previous seven years.
Sherrard did not immediately comment on the amount of money the University would lose by no longer renting out Marvin Center space.
Robert Chernak, senior vice president for SASS, said that preserving Marvin Center space exclusively for students and University events will positively affect student life.
“Student-use and student accessibility of the Marvin Center is a priority for the University,” Chernak said in the University’s release. “This new model will better meet the needs of students and give them a central spot on campus for study groups, meetings and other gatherings.”
Lorraine Voles, vice president for External Relations, will now oversee a majority of the major venues on campus, including all outdoor University spaces, 1918 F St., 1957 E St., Marvin Center, Lisner Auditorium and the Jack Morton Auditorium, according to the release. Michael Peller, formerly the managing director of the Marvin Center and University Conferences, will now serve in a newly created position as assistant vice president for events and venues.
