Where is AC a problem on the UMD campus?

    In order to approach a problem, it must first be defined. University of Maryland has few dorm buildings completely without AC, but they are still in use due to the current limitations of housing as a result of COVID. The dorm buildings without AC are: Caroline, Carrol, Cecil, Chestertown, Ellicott, Hagerstown, Wicomico, and Worcester. Many of these are in the North Hill Community, though some are much further North in the area usually occupied by Freshmen. 

    Three of these buildings were initially going to be phased out as student housing; Caroline, Carrol, and Wicomico, but this was delayed because of the limited housing situation forced by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. This is important; UMD realized there was an issue with some of these older buildings without AC and planned to stop using them as housing, but couldn't. Also, not all of these buildings totally lack AC. Some of them have partial AC, such as Hagerstown or Ellicott (again, North campus Freshmen dorms) as a result of incomplete renovation plans.

    Not all buildings are built equal, even with AC; some rooms in Caroline Hall have visible window AC units built onto the outside, and some don't. Cumberland Hall has AC units on almost every window. Yet, Denton, a building almost identical in design and only a five-minute walk from Cumberland, has a fairly new fan coil AC system. Of course, there are too many dormitories on campus to expect totally consistent infrastructure; but the discrepancies are too great between some of the buildings. In the next post I'll more thoroughly cover the actual negative impact of lack of AC, but there is a very real impact on students who live in dorms totally lacking AC systems. About 16% of students live in a dormitory lacking AC. This may sound minor, but to put this into perspective, that's nearly 3,000 students during a normal residence hall situation.

Sources:

Aubert/ABC7, Amy. “Heat Wave Brings Stifling Temperatures to Dorms without Air-           Conditioning.” WJLA, WJLA, 29 Aug. 2018, wjla.com/news/local/university-of-maryland-dorms-without-air-conditioning-ac.

Drl. “Residence Halls at a Glance.” Resident Life Offers a Number of Different Housing Options across All of Our Communities. Residents May Live in Traditional-Style, Suite-Style, or Apartment-Style Housing. In Addition, Students Can Choose from Single Gender Housing (Students Live in Rooms, Floors, Buildings, or Apartments/Suites with Students of the Same Gender); Mixed Gender Housing (Students Live in Rooms with Students of the Same Gender, but next Door to Students of a Different Gender); and Gender Inclusive Housing (Students, Regardless of Gender, Share the Same Bedroom)., reslife.umd.edu/hallsatglance/.

“Here's What Student Life Is Like At University of Maryland--College Park.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, www.usnews.com/best-colleges/university-of-maryland-2103/student-life#:~:text=University%20of%20Maryland%2D%2DCollege%20Park%20has%20a%20total%20undergraduate,of%20students%20live%20off%20campus.

“We Placed Heat Sensors in Every UMD Dorm without A.C. Here's What We Found.” The Diamondback, 27 Aug. 2020, dbknews.com/2019/10/07/umd-dorms-air-conditioning-heat-sensor-temperature-hot/.