Is the University improving?

It is great to be back writing for the Snapper Opinion Section this year, and it is just great in general to be back at good old M.U.

Along with my initial joy of  being back on campus for the semester, I was also pleasantly surprised to see improvements being made this year.

While the construction may be inconvenient for students at times, I am still happy to see that the campus is being updated.

Perhaps the best improvement to the campus is the addition of turning lanes at the intersection by the Ganser Library. The hassle of trying to turn left in traffic will soon be eliminated by the addition of a directional light.

Currently, the four-way stop provides decent traffic flow with the help of a police officer, but it is still better than the old days of a traffic jammed intersection.

Along with the directional lanes, the bricked crosswalks are a nice aesthetic touch to the otherwise dull white crosswalk pattern we see far too often in the city.

The remodeling and expansion of the Student Memorial Center (SMC) will be interesting when finished, however I see a small problem with the additions being made.

While the SMC is a multipurpose building (fitness, meeting rooms, etc), it does not see nearly the amount of student overload as a dining hall.

Gordinier, as large as it is, is still too small for sufficient student seating. I believe expanding Gordinier, rather than the SMC, would have been a better choice for improvement.

The school’s improvement to the gym will also be a welcomed addition by students who frequent the facility.

However, I do know a few students who prefer to use dumbbells when lifting. They would like to have heavier dumbbells to use, but once the weights exceed a certain size the school has to pay more liability insurance for the increased risk.

In an effort to save money, the school does not carry larger dumbbells. I think there are plenty of other students who would like to see larger dumbbells in the gym.  Perhaps the school will consider this as a future improvement.

Overall I think the school is doing well with the updates on campus, but there are other areas that could use attention.

Here is looking forward to a good school year full of improvements.