By Michael Pedro
The St. Germain Campus Center, located across from the University Commons, underwent some major renovations over the summer. The second floor, which held Student Involvement and Leadership’s offices, as well as the Career Center, now holds the new Student Hub. The room that once held the student mailboxes on the first floor was torn down and transformed into the new Commuter Lounge.
Student Hub Created:
Gregory Matthews, the Senior Vice President for Enrollment Man-
Agreement and Student Life had a lot to say about the Student Hub and how it came to be. “The Student Hub was proposed at least a year ago,” Matthews noted. “As we learn what services are most important to students, we have an opportunity to adjust to meeting different needs as they are better understood.”
Matthews continued, explaining the purpose of the Student Hub and how you could use it. “The purpose of the hub is to ensure a student can get their needs met in a centralized service area,” he said. “Personnel in the hub can coordinate information for an individual student who may have many questions at once.”
While the Student Hub is designed to meet students’ individual needs, it has more purposes that it can serve, especially being a place for casual gatherings and studying. “The best advice I have is to come by and use it,” Matthews said. “Maybe it becomes the space that you study in and have a snack or a drink. It could be the place where you find your club connection. And if you need academic support, we can find the people who can support you best with that as well.”
Leah Cunha, the Assistant Director and Project Coordinator for the Senior Vice President of Enrollment Management and Student Life, and Jeanne “JP” Powers, the Executive Director of the Student Hub, praised what the Student Hub does. “Students have a lot to think about on a daily basis, (so) the Student Hub is here to relieve some of your stress!” Cunha said. “If what you need isn’t directly within the Hub, we have the ability to connect you. We can even help connect students with specific clubs or organizations that they might be interested in joining.”
Cunha also added that clubs can use the Student Hub to spread awareness about their meetings and events. “They can tag (the Student Hub) on Instagram at @wne_studenthub, and we’d be happy to share. There will also be a designated space in the Hub to post upcoming event flyers,” Cunha said. The Student Hub hosts events of its very own as well. These include events “such as Cookie Tuesdays, First Year Fridays, and Selfies With Spirit (on select Saturdays),” Cunha concluded. More information about these events can be found on the official Student Hub website. Powers said that the Student Hub runs the Cub Hub program aimed at new students. “We offer the Cub Hub Challenge, which engages first-year students with on-campus activities and events that encourage their connection to the Western New England community,” Powers claimed. If you want to check out the Student Hub, it is on the second floor of the St. Germain Campus Center, located down the hall to the left of the Senate Chambers if you enter from Campus Center A/B.
Commuter Lounge Renovated:
The other completed major movement in the Campus Center is the new Commuter Lounge. In the middle of the Spring 2024 semester, it was announced that the Commuter Lounge would be moved from its location. The old lounge was replaced by a room dedicated to Western New England University’s new E-sports Gaming Room, while the new lounge would take the place of the student mailboxes, located just across the hall. On Thursday, August 22, 2024, the new lounge was officially opened. Located across the hall from the E-Sports Gaming Room, where the old student mailboxes were located, the new Commuter Lounge is slightly smaller than the old one. However, the many chairs and tables can still accommodate
the numerous commuters on campus.
Blanca Amaya, a sophomore commuter student and the Chairperson of the First Floor Campus Center Renovation Committee, had some positive and negative thoughts on the current state of the lounge. “I like the new Commuter Lounge. However, I also think it’s a little dull at the moment,” Amaya noted. There’s no TV, microwave, or fridge which is a little upsetting.”
However, while the current lounge is somewhat dull at the moment, it may receive what the old lounge had. Improvements have been made to it recently, with a security camera in the process of installation, as well as other additions to come. It’s been an interesting year for the Campus Center, as it is undergoing many changes that can redefine what this building means to the student population.
