Coming on the heels of a fast-paced trimester, D-term has, as always, proved to be a welcome change of pace for North Central students in need of a breather.
Harris Jordan (’19) is one such student who’s been able to do just that. He’s been spending his D-term practicing and performing music; but when asked what his favorite part was, he simply replied: “catching up on sleep.”
For Quintin Tallian (’20), his extra free time has allowed him to pick up hours at work, while still having time to work out.
Yet while students are taking some time to relax and enjoy themselves, there’s work going on all across campus.
At the beginning of D-term, the college’s new mail room was unveiled, moving from its longtime home of Old Main in favor of New Hall. The hundreds of mailboxes that once lined the walls of its previous residence, however, didn’t make the transition; undoubtedly, a sign of both the ever-changing demands of North Central students, as well as the college continuously working to accommodate these changes.
In this case, it was found that the volume of paper mail had significantly shrunk, while the number of packages received had increased. With this in mind, the new mail room has a significantly larger space behind the counter to better handle this increase. Similarly, there is now a printer and computer in the mail room intended to make it easier on students wishing to send packages. This should prove to be a particularly valuable resource for students who need to return textbooks.
Edna Howard, who has been the mail room supervisor for the past 18 years, is happy with the new mail room. Howard said she believes the location is more convenient for students, especially for the kids who live in the neighboring dorms.
But most of all, Howard is glad to have all the extra space behind the counter. It had become a problem trying to make room for the increase in packages. But the test, she pointed out, will be the first couple days of Winter Term when students are ordering their textbooks.
Further assisting in alleviating the high volume of packages is a new Amazon Locker, located on the exterior of the Book Store adjacent to Wentz. Students now have the opportunity to send and receive Amazon packages without the use of the mail room, allowing for 24/7 access.
Meanwhile, work has already begun on renovating the mail room’s former space on the first floor of Old Main. Soon the area where packages were once distributed and mailboxes sat will serve as reception and conference area for prospective students. Likewise, the College’s admission staff will soon see their space on the second floor renovated.
Finally, the Sesquicentennial Walkway — or spine, as its often called — peeked its head out of its seven-month-long hibernation after being blocked off since Spring Term last year as work progressed on the college’s new Science Center. The walkway’s opening is surely reflective of how well North Central’s latest addition is coming along.
