Following many complaints from students and resident assistants about broken washing machines in Krueger and the suites, the machines were recently fixed.
“Once word [about a broken appliance] reaches this office, it will be solved,” said Director of Residence Life Jim Bajczyk. “At least, you know it will be fixed.”
Lakeland College has a service contract through MacGray; all the washing and drying machines on campus used to be owned by them. It has now been four or five years since Lakeland purchased the appliances.
MacGray still fixes the machines for Lakeland whenever they break down; however, since the company is located in Oshkosh, it may take a couple of days before a machine can be fixed.
Bajczyk asks students to remember that sometimes the school must order parts for broken appliances, which also contributes to delays in repair.
“The minute we get the complaint, we will send out info [about the problem] to MacGray,” said Bajczyk.
The average lifespan for the laundry machines on campus is five years, and it has been this long since the school purchased new ones.
“We are experiencing a few more issues because the machines are getting older,” said Bajczyk.
Some students may question why the problem concerning the aging laundry facilities was not addressed over summer break.
“Some contracts [like MacGray’s] cannot fix Lakeland’s [appliances] during the summer, so they have to wait until the school year,” said Bajczyk.
Bajczyk says overstuffing may have also contributed to the washing machines breaking, for this is hard on the drums of the machine.
“Students should be able to see at least one-third of the top of the washing machine,” said Bajczyk on how to load one’s personal laundry.
Resident assistants help with keeping staff aware of broken items in residence halls, but students are still encouraged to contact Bajczyk when an appliance is not working correctly.
Despite the guarantee of repair, some students feel that even a minor delay is unacceptable in terms of the appliances they desperately need on a regular basis.
“It’s frustrating because a lot of the things we need, or that make life a little easier are constantly breaking down,” said Tia Pribbernow a junior and first floor resident assistant for Krueger.
“It’s inconvenient to try to find alternate ways to do things.”