Space availability problems persist for student groups following Washington University’s spring 2019 decision to convert the Gargoyle and Mallinckrodt 100A into offices.

When the University first announced plans for the conversion six months ago, student groups opposed the decision, citing the importance of the Gargoyle as a popular venue for their performances and rehearsals. It was one of the few spaces free of rental costs and allowed outside catering.

The University went ahead with construction on July 17 despite the lobbying efforts of many student groups, including a petition filed last spring. The construction is expected to last until Dec. 20.

This conversion caused tension between student groups and University administration. Despite not altering their plans, the University said it would find new ways to accommodate the needs of these groups while they attempt to handle the transition.

Rob Wild, associate vice chancellor for student transition and engagement and dean of students, maintained that the Gargoyle is essential for new offices.

“The University needed to identify a space for these offices that serve students,” Wild said. “There will be four student services that will go into that space. The academic mentoring team…the writing center…the college writing program…additional staff from the Title IX office.”

After communicating with Student Union and various student organizations, the University is responding to concerns from student groups by providing alternative spaces.

“One thing we did was we configured the Mudd Multipurpose Room over the summer on the South 40 to make it more of a performance rehearsal space,” Wild said. “Other measures were also introduced, such as making more spaces accessible and subsidizing costs.”

Abby Sanderson, Carnaval co-director, believes that these alternatives improved the situation, but only to a certain extent.

“[The University] has offered us the ability to use spaces for free,” Sanderson said. “So financially, there isn’t a very large impact yet. But in general, planning has been a little more difficult this year. There is overall less space for student groups to use and those spaces have become very competitive.”

According to Sanderson, this competitiveness is affecting the organization of events.

“In peak hours throughout the entire semester, we are scrambling to try and get an hour here or an hour there,” Sanderson said. “We have to make a lot of adjustments in our timeline so things are more spread out.”

Jiyoon Kang, the executive director of Lunar New Year Festival (LNYF), started the petition to save the space in the first place. She said she has also found flaws with the space alternatives to the Gargoyle.

“[The University] is really unclear about which rooms are free and which rooms are not,” Kang said. “A lot of students are kind of confused. The Student Union guideline seems to be contradicting [with reality].”

Kang also worries that larger student groups may be prioritized over other smaller student groups.

“I think some other groups who are not cultural shows can be seen as less important to campus,” Kang said. “I feel like their choices of booking are more limited.”

When asked about the University’s intention of making Mallinckrodt a more academically-vibrant building, Ronald Lucas, Carnaval co-director, emphasized the importance of Mallinckrodt as a multipurpose space.

“I think the Mallinckrodt is one of the few buildings on campus that is just much more than an academic setting,” Lucas said. “I think the Gargoyle served a very essential purpose, being the place where all the cultural groups gather together to organize dances and events.”

“I don’t think the value of those offices outweigh the values the Gargoyle had to the student body,” Sanderson said.

Both the University and student groups agree that more communication is vital for preventing this kind of issue from happening in the future.

“I will acknowledge that there’s always a need to be more communicative about changes like this,” Wild said. “If there are student groups that are concerned about not having space for their event, they should let us know.”

Kang said she fully understands the University’s intention but considers the University’s lack of communication with students to be the root of the problem.

“When we asked about any student opinions being involved, [the Provost’s office] was pretty clear that [they] had zero student opinion involved in this decision,” Kang said. “Even a small survey could have helped a lot on getting student opinions. I think they just based it on what they see through data, and I think that’s where the problem started.”

Sanderson acknowledges that communication between students and administration is difficult, however she encourages the administration to listen to the voices of the students.

“I don’t necessarily blame the administrators who made this decision,” Sanderson said. “I think that when the student body speaks up in such a way…[there] is a point at which the administrators need to take a step back and ask, ‘Are we really making a decision that is in the best interest of students?’”

Both the University and student groups will keep searching for new ways to accommodate groups.

“At this point I feel like a lot of people are chilled down because it’s been a while and the University is trying to accommodate us,” Kang said.

“It’s a little frustrating,” Sanderson said. “But the show will go on. I hope they are really nice offices.”

Student groups petition to keep Gargoyle open