If you’ve had a class in person, then you have or will have had a class in Raub Hall. Raub is home to our multicultural center and our English, history, political science, and women & gender studies departments. Recently, the building has gone into disarray, and people are starting to take notice. Students often complain of heating and cooling issues while sitting in classes. Faculty and staff also deal with the brunt of the issues of Raub and have watched the building rot for years with little to no help from the administration. In this article, you’ll read the perspective of professors and students on the current state of Raub while getting the latest scoop on Raub’s upcoming renovation.
Faculty and Staff Thoughts
All the faculty and staff interviewed gave valuable insight into Raub and what it means for the campus historically and presently. Raub is key for LHU’s survival, and the decisions surrounding Raub could leave a lot of people angry and disappointed when they already are. Many of the faculty members shared some discontent with the administration’s transparency on planning. However, no one shared any bad blood or hard feelings for facilities staff who are underpaid and overworked with absurd tasks that don’t lead to long-term maintenance of the campus. Dr. Berard said it best: “The people on the line are as responsive as they can be.”
It’s apparent that Raub has a heating and cooling problem and has for decades. This is due to the building’s HVAC system being replaced by “parts found at salvage,” according to Dr. Jones. When your HVAC system is built from scrap parts from a junkyard, and no new parts have been made in decades, it may be time to investigate a new system. Facilities blamed the “harsh winter weather we have experienced”; however, Dr. Jones’s office has been without a proper cooling system for several years.
Raub faculty and staff are forced to endure these horrible issues with little to no plans from campus higher-ups for solutions. Facilities states that any upcoming renovations “will be paid for directly by the state through the Department of General Services,” which is normal for any capital project. However, many faculty and staff are very pessimistic that these renovations will happen soon or will be done correctly. Dr. Berard and Dr. Jones spoke of a committee that was selected by Dr. Berard to give faculty opinions on upcoming renovations one year ago; however, no one has been contacted since then. Faculty want transparency and meetings on the future of Raub and would like to give valuable input that would save the campus time and money. Some faculty feel people who don’t know how to educate shouldn’t be putting changes into place that could negatively affect Raub’s learning environment. Changes that are done poorly or incorrectly will require more renovations (and money) down the line. But the administration doesn’t seem interested in maintaining the campus we have left.
However, some of the faculty have voiced that Raub may have more issues than administration would like to admit. Dr. Jones has been on multiple committees and has experience in masonry and construction. Dr. Jones stated Raub is “an entirely nonconforming building, and according to contemporary code, it’s not there.” Many fear that Raub may have too many problems to fix and will cost the Commonwealth much more than the 18 million that they have said. To the building being built into the side of the hill, or the asbestos that many faculty and staff suspect may be in the pipes or walls, the problems in Raub may be in a more severe condition than they initially expected. But with no transparency, none of the faculty and staff can confirm or deny the suspicions.
All the information we have about the future of Raub can be found in the facilities master plan and Council of Trustees minutes. Raub is getting a planned renovation expected to cost around 20,000,000 dollars and has been in the works since pre-integration. But when our budget combined with Bloomsburg and Mansfield, we were brought into the red, killing the reserves we had left, putting Raub on hold for probably another couple of years. But as we stated before, the faculty or staff doesn’t think 20,000,000 will cut it for all the problems facing Raub, and with no transparency, faculty and staff are left to fill in the gaps.
Student’s Opinion on Raub
Students have their own thoughts and feelings on the current state of Raub. You can often hear students complain in classes all the time about the uncomfortable temperature they are forced to deal with day to day. One student stated, “The temperatures should be manageable and not affect students’ focus in their classroom environment.” People also have a lot to say about the stairwell and how dilapidated it looks. Student Dom Caruso commented, “When I go down the stairs, the metal railing leaves residue on my hand.” Students have also noticed how old some of the classrooms are and how outdated they are. “I think the building is okay, but some of the classrooms need updating,” stated Dom. However, through all this, the students feel that professors continue through the tough conditions, one student stating, “I don’t think they have a choice but to adapt.” Students also share their discomfort with Raub, with one stating, “Other than the multicultural center, I don’t find Raub comfortable, and even then, the temperatures are inconsistent through the entire building.” Students are discontent with Raub and are vocal about the uncomfortable environment they are forced to endure, and feel like not enough is being done.
Final Thoughts
Students and faculty must give it up to our facilities crew trying to maintain a rotting building that’s not conforming to any code. Faculty and staff find that the issue is the administration not taking complaints or valuable insight from people who want the best for this campus. They continue to “save” money in deferred maintenance while people complain of peeling steps, musty smells, and irregular class temperatures. Students, staff, and faculty could pressure the administration for more transparency in the form of open meetings mapping out the future of Raub and other issues on campus. But so far, the administration has kept people out of the loop and seems content keeping it that way.
Have a great day, Bald Eagles!
