The Space for You:
CCNY’s very own improved student center
Fig 1: Anarchist Architects architected the student center
November 6th, 2023
The Anarchist Architects
Karif Davis
Michael Fulgencio
Luis Hidalgo
Aisha Pimentel
Introduction
“Sometimes you need to forget how you feel and remember what you deserve.” College is not only about preparing yourself for a specific career, it is also about enjoying your life as a young adult before you go out into the real world. As students of The City College of New York also known as CCNY, we have noticed the lack of space for students to enjoy themselves. Most students spend most of their time in the library or hanging around school till their next class. Yes, time can be used to study but it’s not always about studying, we deserve a break as well. Due to this problem, student life at CCNY is very minimal and a good percentage of students find it hard to make social connections. Improving student life at CCNY will not only help with academic performance but as well as providing a recreational and social space for students to unwind and promote CCNY as a college dedicated to helping their students.
Change is needed to unlock the best version of oneself. This is why a student center at CCNY will help others find the things they enjoy. Our data method of choice was a survey because it allowed us to collect a large amount of information, to understand the concerns and opinions of the students at CCNY. This way we will be able to accommodate their needs. Based on the data that was collected approximately 80% of students agreed with the idea of a student center because of the little social life CCNY has. As well as providing a space to hang with friends which according to students being a good student leads to a good school. On the other hand, approximately 20% of students do not want a student center because of the lack of time they have. Furthermore, student answers will be available to read in the appendix with more detailed information.
Fig 2. Graph of primary survey findings
Many colleges such as Brooklyn College, and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University are prime examples of expectational student centers. These centers are also known as community centers which provide daily services and conveniences to every member of the college according to NCAT University. These centers are meant to be welcoming, diversified, integral, and student centered. With the help of these centers, they hope to improve college life and activity among the students. As we create this student center, we want to create an environment where students have the opportunity to access everything in one space.
Action Plan
Looking into what we are building for the school we expect to have a full student center complete with A lounge, Food Court, Gaming room, and commons room. This student center will be located in Wingate Hall entering the first room being the lounge area (75x15ft) being connected to the commons which will provide smaller rooms for group projects (12’7×17’8ft). Connecting to the lounge room will also be the gaming room which is a medium-sized room (15×25’3ft) that will have games for students and areas to relax. Lastly will be the Food Court which will be a big room (40x40ft) providing food served from the school cafeteria with vending machines with snacks and drinks.
Our first room introducing you to the student center will be the lounge area, this will be complete with couches and beds where students can sit down and relax as well as for in-between rest or a quick nap before a long commute home. This area will also be where students can get their work done in groups where tables and chairs will be located with charging ports to keep laptops and phones alive. Students who choose to work alone can choose to work in cubbies that have charging ports.
Fig 3. Lounge area
The commons room is similar to the lounge room but smaller allowing for students in groups to have a quiet session in groups. This room will have a large table where students can sit around as well as a projector where they can connect their electronics and host work, watch videos/ presentations for class, and a whiteboard for group note-taking. Also Provided with charging ports and cubbies for bags and hangers for clothes.
Fig 4. Private Room (The Commons)
Another room leading into the food court where there will be rows of tables for students to sit down and enjoy some food provided by the school, serving an array of foods provided for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The Food Court will also have a café and such as (blank) and Food Court will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., vending machines will also have snacks and various other energy drinks, coffee, water, etc.
Fig 5. Food Court
Students can transition into the Gaming room for extra relaxation and pause their studies where they can socialize and play multiple types of games. This room will provide TVs that will have multiple Xboxes and games for students to play with multiple controllers, students can also bring consoles from home and hook them up to the TV allowing students to kick back and play with each other. Other games that will be accessible are a variation of tabletop games such as cards, board games, and roleplaying tabletop games.
Fig 6. Gaming Room
Cost/benefits
When we asked about what improvements students wanted to see in the student center, some of the most common answers were an overall improvement to the space itself, with areas used for rest, gaming, and building social connections. When students are out of class they have constant worry about getting their work done. There is no real place on campus where students forget about their work for a short period and just decompress. With that being said, students responded to our survey saying that they use a lounge to simply relax. Students also said they wanted more accommodations such as more food options, and an area for gaming. And lastly, students want a place where they can build strong connections with other students. With students wanting a completely new/improved student center, there also comes the cost.
Construction timetable:
Installing each room will take a certain amount of time as some rooms have more resources than others and some are bigger and need more time for renovations. This chart takes into account the furniture and materials needed and how long it’ll take to have it shipped and set up, this chart also tracks the renovation of the rooms themselves and the necessary time to construct and build the rooms from the ground up. These renovations also consider bathrooms and other necessary resources such as charging ports, programs, TVs, etc.
Fig 7. Our timetable for furniture and renovations.
| Area of Student Center | Cost |
| Renovations (floors, bathrooms, furniture, etc) | $11,000,000 |
| Lounge | $60,000 |
| Food court | $193,772 |
| Gaming room | $791,000 |
| Commons room | $35,000 |
| Total | $12,079,772 |
Fig 8: Total budget for construction and contents.
Now that you know what the students want and approximately how much it would cost to make that happen, now we can look at the benefits. With a newly improved student center, students will be able to relax before, after, and even in between classes. With a place to relieve stress, students will be more inclined to do homework and classwork without feeling overwhelmed. With much less stress, homework grades will improve, and with better grades, professors, students, and overall faculty will be happier. Furthermore, a place where students can gather together will make a stronger community and a much better college culture [networking]. A better community will appeal to the eyes of people looking to take classes at CCNY. With more people coming to CCNY, the expensive improvements to the student center will eventually pay for itself.
Our Team
Luis Hidalgo is a second-year college student at CCNY interested in electrical engineering, attended KIPP NYC College Preparatory High School and graduated with honors in late June of 2022. Luis likes to pay attention to detail which allows him to build his skills in organizing and planning which he utilizes in his academics to do his best in the classroom.
Karif Davis is a second-year student at CCNY with a major in mechanical engineering and a minor in business. Before starting college at CCNY, Karif attended Success Academy High School of the Liberal Arts in New York and graduated in June 2022. Karif is an organized person who can work well with the people around him if need be. Karif’s interests are anything sports. Soccer, Basketball, Football, Formula 1, etc. When Karif is not in class or consumed with work, he is most likely playing games, relaxing with friends, or playing soccer. Although Karif’s major is mechanical engineering, he does not want to work for a massive company. Karif wants to have a lowkey lifestyle with his own body shop/garage where he builds his cars.
Aisha Pimentel is a first-year undeclared student learning to major in computer engineering at The City College of New York. She attended Bronx Collaborative High School where she was top 5 in the graduating class of 2023. Throughout high school, she attended classes at Lehman College, while interning at the National Museum of Mathematics. Here she found an interest in computers while working with the technology department. In her free time, Aisha likes to listen to music, read, cook, and spend time with her family. She hopes to become a computer engineer at a major company like Google while hoping to someday work for a company of her own.
Michael Fulgencio is a second-year student at The City College of New York undeclared aiming to major in computer science. Michael went to Urban Assembly for Green Careers where he worked with many students on several types of projects ranging from agricultural, academic, and personal. This is how he developed skills in team collaboration and analysis. Michael’s interest in computer science started in middle school where he attended The Computer School and developed an interest through the programming class and opportunities given. Michael’s hobbies consist of reading and working out which helps further reading comprehension and discipline, Michael wants to further his skills and try for hands-on internships to advance his career in computer science.
Conclusion
A student center here at CCNY will help provide relaxation and build a sociable community where students can hang out and indulge in common interests, as well as focus on work and their academic needs. Providing students with a central place to study, socialize, and eat all together will help bring out more students to the college and help boost grades by providing students with more resources for relaxation and fun. The future of CCNY will strive hopefully to have new organizations and groups inviting new and old students to join and build our community. This would hopefully have a positive impact on how students view their college experience and continue to strive to achieve their goals. With the creation of this center, we hope CCNY continues to thrive and continues to grow as a college community. The future of CUNY relies primarily on the engagement of its students.
References
College, Brooklyn. “Student Center.” Brooklyn College, 24 Aug. 2023, www.brooklyn.edu/dosa/administrative-services/student-center/.
Flynn, E. (2023, March 16). Game room opens in Melton Student Center. The Auburn Plainsman. Retrieved, from https://www.theplainsman.com/article/2023/03/game-room-opens-in-melton-student-center
Pride, Aggie. “The Role of the Student Center.” Welcome to North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University,www.ncat.edu/campus-life/student-affairs/departments/student-center/the-role-of-the-student-center.php. Accessed 5 Nov. 2023.
School Facilities COST CALCULATOR. (n.d.). Center for Cities + Schools. Retrieved from https://citiesandschools.berkeley.edu/uploads/21csf_CC+S_School_Facilities_Cost_Calculator_User_Guide.pdf
Appendix
The photos down below contain some of the responses we were able to collect throughout our data-gathering process.
