Last week, the head of West Campus operations came and talked us about a few of the challenges that he faces doing his job. On a daily, I never really think about what would happen or what the behind the scenes operations of making sure this facility is running smoothly. Ultimately, we are all here to learn and get our degrees and then we just dip. But it’s important to remember sort of referring to the maslow’s hierarchy of needs, that we need our physical needs taken care of before we can do anything else, and that’s what maintenance is here for.

So the talk started off explaining how many short cuts were taken when building west campus because of time constraints, but since, they have learned from their mistakes and they will be sure not to make the same mistakes again during the construction of the new dorm in North.

So, something small that I found really cool was the fact that curtain repair requests in lower floors get way more attention than higher up floors. It’s cool how this man chooses how to prioritize every single maintenance request that gets sent out. He only has 3 guys who he sends around. There are a lot of factors that he has to deal with and it’s kind of amazing how he deals with them all so well and he loves his job, kind of made my heart happy.

One thing that I found particularly interesting is the fact that the gothics rarely get maintenance requests, old is gold. Most of the newer houses’ problems stem from the technology that has been put in place. I live in a gothic, and I sort of love it for some reason. I wish the bathrooms were ventilated though, that would be nice.

It was really neat to learn about maintaining West Campus from Chris VanDruff last week.

I don’t live in the main house, but I was under the impression that it was air conditioned. I found out that instead, the house is cooled by connection to Cayuga Lake. I wasn’t surprised to hear that lights were among the most popular trouble-causers for maintenance. Our main light bulb went out just a month ago, but thankfully, it was promptly replaced.

I had no idea that the gates at either end of the pathway between the main houses and the gothics were added comparatively recently. I can see how the street presented safety hazards before, and I’m glad that there is little to no traffic there now. I imagine it’s quieter now too, which is nice since my window is right above that road. I was surprised to hear that it was such a complicated process to close it off though. There were so many little details involved that I would never have considered off the top of my head.

I found it interesting how Chris started in plumbing, and eventually made his way here, on West. How he worked his way from apprentice, to plumber, then a student, and finally oversight. I really have respect for him in being able to go from only using the tools, to using his mind and putting his knowledge to work. Coming from a family with a history of skilled union workers, I found it interesting how Cornell has a contract with the unions. I didn’t realize that it is skilled workers who come it for repairs and fixes, rather than someone who can get the job done and a fraction of the price. The fact that Chris is able to hand pick those he wants shows the respect the others have for his as well.

What also caught my attention, was that Cornell took the easy way out on some of the main houses here on west, and didn’t exactly realize these buildings weren’t up to code. How it took a few years to eventually realize there were faults that needed to repaired right away, and that no one realized sooner.

Overall, I enjoyed this cafe and it made me think about what members of my family do and the connections I made during this one-hour period.

On Wednesday, Chris VanDruff came to discuss West Campus maintenance. I previously did not know that all service requests concerning lights were prioritized and labeled as same-day service. If I knew this before I wouldn’t have been so hesitant about putting in a service request. I thought the story about the circuits in Bethe house was really interesting–it seems to be a common theme that when Cornell ran out of money for building West Campus and started to cut corners, there were a lot of things overlooked. Something as small as circuits could have a big impact.

During Wednesday’s Rose Café, Chris VanDruff came in to discuss the maintenance of West Campus. It was interesting to learn about how he decides how to spend the budget and also how maintenance requests are prioritized.  It was also fascinating to learn that there are only four electricians for West Campus, North Campus, Collegetown, and the athletic buildings. It is amazing that these four electricians are able to get to all of these places to respond to maintenance requests. Before the Rose Cafés, I did not know that the newer buildings on West Campus were built in a rush, so many corners were cut in order to complete the buildings early. It was interesting to learn about some of the issues in the main houses such as the lights and fan switches. I also never really thought about how much work and thought goes into maintaining West Campus until this Rose Café. This Rose Café opened my eyes to more parts of West Campus that I don’t see on an every day basis when I am not on West. I will make sure that when I see the electricians or any one who works to maintain West Campus, I will say thank you and make sure they know how much I appreciate them.

I had the opportunity to listen to Chris VanDruff talk about the work he does and the duties he oversees on West campus.  This experience gave me a greater appreciation for the workers who act behind the scenes to make sure that we have the best living experience on this campus as possible.  Mr. VanDruff told us about how a good portion of his job is to respond to maintenance requests, such as fixing the blinds on windows and replacing light bulbs.  Although I have not had many problems with my room this semester, I remember filling out several maintenance request forms for our broken blinds last year and how someone had to come to our room every time; since this was on North campus, Mr. VanDruff didn’t come to our room himself, but thinking back on these experiences put his work into perspective for me.

I also thought it was interesting that he was responsible for designing and assembling rooms that create a good environment for the house professors and for students who need certain accommodations.  I appreciated the fact that Mr. VanDruff told us that he was always looking for ways to renovate the buildings on West so that we have fewer problems while living in our dorms; he demonstrated that he was looking out for our best interests and wanted us to enjoy our time on West.

On Wednesday, I attended the Rose Cafe where Chris VanDruff led a discussion on what it takes to keep West Campus in top-notch shape.  He first explained how he got his start at Cornell as a plumber, later transitioning to management as he earned a degree from the ILR school.  VanDruff also explained the variety of maintenance requests and projects he is responsible for, from simple fixes for lights and blinds to more complicated matters like renovating common areas in the Gothics.  

He discussed the challenges of responding to requests promptly while appropriately prioritizing them.  For example, he makes sure to respond to safety issues like a malfunctioning no-prop door right away.  However, he has a limited staff, so some non-urgent requests may take more time.  VanDruff also strives to judiciously spend his department budget, making decisions such as replacing old light fixtures with new ones that house LED bulbs instead of simply replacing the bulb: a higher upfront cost with future savings.  

VanDruff also highlighted the differences between the new West Campus buildings and the Gothics from his department’s perspective.  I was surprised to hear that he receives more maintenance requests from residents in the new buildings than the Gothics, mainly due to unforeseen problems following the rushed construction of some of the new buildings.  The Gothics, however, are the source of larger projects, like replacing failing slate tiles and renovating the common spaces.  

I was intrigued by his explanation of the air conditioning systems in the new buildings: they rely on chilled water pumped from Cayuga Lake.  This environmentally-friendly method saves about 80% of the energy needed for conventional air conditioning systems.  I searched online and found that this lake source cooling system serves 80 Cornell buildings (40% of the campus).  

VanDruff closed by emphasizing how his job is not only to keep West Campus well-maintained, but also to ensure student safety in the process.  He explained the thorough research involved in installing the security gates on Gothics Way (a joint effort with Dr. Blalock).  I am very grateful for the amazing maintenance staff that keep our buildings in great shape.  Overall, I really enjoyed these Rose Cafes that explored the ins and outs of Cornell.  

At this Rose Cafe, Mr. Chris VanDruff discussed his job and the process of maintaining West Campus. It provided a lot of insight as to the work that goes into maintenance requests and also how construction projects are carried out.

One interesting topic that stood out to me was the discussion of how the five main West Campus houses were built, with Cook House built first and the other houses built later. Since the management decided to speed up the building process of the remaining four houses on a dwindling budget, many corners were cut in regards to the quality and design of the buildings. For example, Mr. VanDruff mentioned that Bethe House has many electrical problems due to sub par fan switches that were installed throughout the entire building. In contrast, Mr. VanDruff mentioned that the Gothics receive much fewer maintenance requests in comparison, even though they are much older buildings.

Mr. VanDruff also discussed the importance of safety on West Campus, discussing the gates that were installed to block off traffic and the importance of fixing door maintenance requests. It was reassuring to hear that any maintenance requests regarding safety are placed highest on a priority list of requests. Attending this Rose Cafe helped me realize the logistical work and process of maintaining West Campus. It definitely gave me a greater appreciation of the skilled workers that work to address maintenance requests and for the durability of the Gothics buildings.

I attended the third behind-the-scenes discussion of West Campus system where Mr. Chris VanDruff mainly described his job and talked about some challenges and difficulties of maintaining the buildings, dorms and infrastructure of West Campus.  It was a nice and instructional conversation and many students’ questions and concerns got answered.

It’s unbelievable that Mr. VanDruff, together with four more people, took charge of all the maintenance requests we place in West Campus including the main houses and the gothic.  I placed one maintenance request on the big light before and it was fixed immediately on the next day, which I really appreciated. It’s not surprising for students to wait since in such a big community where we have dorms, dining, common areas and outside roads, Mr. VanDruff might receive a lot of requests form everywhere, but I’m pretty impressed by the efficiency and good work he and his team did. He talked about how the priority system works which shows that he’s quite professional in dealing with student housing issues. And also it makes me more grateful since he really thinks for students.

Another big part of the conversation is about the security issues in West Campus. I agreed on Professor Garrick Blalock’s point that there’s some issue that the technology cannot fix and we should rely on ourselves, the community to fix these problems. I personally think the entry system with card readers is pretty advanced though we know there’s possibility for strangers coming in. However, we could do thing with the technology part since people are smarter, if someone wants to get in, he or she will find some way using  the weakness of the technology. Thus, we should rely on our selves to achieve a safer environment. For example be more alert when somebody is following you into the building and give a call when necessary notifying the campus security.

To conclude, I learn a lot during this conversation. It’s a rare opportunity for students to know the behind-the-scenes issues happening around. Also, it’s great that I can notice some faces on campus who hurried around to make our living area a better place. Thank you.