California Lutheran University students should have around-the-clock access to printers in residence halls after the Pearson Library and the Student Union close at 10 p.m. on weeknights.
Students working deep into the night to meet their deadlines lose access to essential campus resources available in those buildings.
I don’t have a personal printer, so I am left to figure it out on my own. In the evening, I rush to the library or Student Union before they close to make sure I have my papers ready, since I know they won’t be open before my morning class.
Senior Kate O’Hara, a psychology major, said she remembers the stress of her sophomore year, when the library’s closing time forced her to rush to write an English paper.
“I felt like I had a sloppy ending to my paper. I had this time limit of, ‘Oh, the library closes at 10,’ when in reality, I really had all night,” O’Hara said.
For students who can’t afford their own printer, the lack of after-hours printing creates a stressful time crunch.
O’Hara said she has turned in assignments late because she had to wait for the library to open in the morning.
Associated Students of California Lutheran University President Ashlyn Bryson-Beane, a senior psychology major, said while the campus has moved toward digital platforms for submitting assignments on Canvas, the need for printed copies remains vital for effective studying.
“Definitely, like, some people prefer to do, like, their readings or something on paper. So, not being able to print that can be hard,” Bryson-Beane said.
Bryson-Beane, who lives on campus and does not own a printer herself, said providing access is a responsibility the university owes its students, not just convenience.
“I think just makes it less, like, harder for our students to, you know, make sure that they can get to the class on time the next morning if they’re going to have to stop by and print something,” Bryson-Beane said.
Beyond the daily inconvenience, Bryson-Beane said she believes vocalizing these frustrations is a fundamental right for those paying for their degree.
“The whole reason that we are on this campus is for our own education… it’s a lot of money to be here, so it’s important for us to use our voices and express our concerns in a way that can get things done, if possible,” Bryson-Beane said.
Jennette Bristol, public services coordinator at Pearson Library, said the library sees a significant spike in printing during midterms and finals. She said managing the machines without staff oversight would be difficult in residence halls.
“There are maintenance and supply issues that can be prevented by having staff oversee a printer. Someone would have to order and install paper and toner,” Bristol said in an email interview. “The biggest challenges might be managing expectations of students, should it run out of paper, toner or break down.”
Bristol said that sometimes students stay to work on their assignments and may want a little more time to finish so they can print the papers before the library closes, and, on rare occasions, they have students arrive right before closing time to print their assignments.
“The students have been able to print, and we do our best to allow them to finish, inform them of other options available, or ask them to return when we open in the morning,” Bristol said.
I am one of the students who tend to stay up until the library closes to get all my materials printed for the next day because I don’t own a personal printer.
Bryson-Beane said print accessibility on campus has been brought up multiple times a year to ASCLU Senate during the four years she has been involved.
“I don’t think it’s a question of funding. I think it really does come down to who would be in charge of maintenance,” Bryson-Beane said.
Bryson-Beane said a solution for students could involve delegating printer-related tasks to a designated person on duty to check the printers each night and ensure they are well-maintained and stocked with ink.
Bryson-Beane said the university does not need a printer in every single residence hall to solve this problem, but could instead place one printer in a main study area on each side of campus to bridge the gap.
Specifically mentioning locations like Trinity, Mogen, and Mt. Clef halls, Bryson-Beane said she believes having one on each side “would definitely be helpful.”
O’Hara said that by placing printers in these residential halls, the university would enable students to use good study habits, such as physical annotations and peer reviews, to improve students’ overall performance.
It would be beneficial for students to have access to printers in the residence halls’ study rooms after hours, when the library and Student Union are closed, to ensure equal academic resources for all students, regardless of whether they own a personal printer.
