Council aims to reform hand-me-down system

Author: Samantha Michaels

The Community Council met on April 14 with representatives from Recycling Facilities and discussed initiatives to reduce the tremendous amount of reusable furniture, books, clothing and other materials which are annually left as waste during the student move-out period in May. This problem is particularly pronounced during senior week - when graduating seniors must determine what to do with dormitory items as they prepare to leave campus for the last time, and underclassmen looking to buy furnishings for future years have already gone home on summer vacation.

As explained by Linda Ross, assistant director of Custodial Services, a large mass of trash - up to 136,220 pounds - must be sorted and recycled, though much of the items could be salvaged for later student use.

"We want to get stuff out of the hands of seniors and into the hands of underclassmen," added Emily Proctor, assistant professor of Mathematics and Council representative, "but there's this time lag where seniors are here for an extra week."

During their hour and a half meeting, members of Community Council brainstormed several possible solutions to this problem. First, Dean of the College and Community Council Co-Chair Tim Spears proposed a student-run organization and redistribution of unwanted materials - an entrepreneurial opportunity which would both profit involved students and help to eliminate unnecessary waste. "In terms of incentives," said Spears, "suppose we allow a certain number of underclass students … to remain on campus during senior week … with the understanding that their responsibility is to organize the materials that have been left behind." This group of individuals would sort and store the items before leaving campus, and then sell it back to fellow classmates in the fall for a potentially sizeable profit.

The Recycling Facilities team seemed enthusiastic about this idea. Proctor explained that they have previously entertained a similar solution, whereby different organizations or sports teams at the College could assume this responsibility and plan a fundraising yard sale for the start of the next academic year.

The Community Council also discussed a number of other viable options, focusing particularly on methods to mobilize untapped underclassmen demand for leftover furnishings, while encouraging graduating seniors to plan ahead.

"If it was understood by underclassmen that there are seniors they've never met who have things they might want, it could solve the problem," said Peyton Coles '08.5.

Proctor added, "I think the underlying question is really how to get seniors to think about [these move-out issues] a little bit earlier."

Creating an online database of items - similar to Craigslist or eBay - is one way of addressing these concerns. Graduating seniors would be able to electronically post a list of their unwanted materials, and interested underclassmen could browse for purchases online, with the transaction taking place in the spring. Online shopping might also occur over the summer, though storage would then be necessary to accommodate the items until the fall.

However, though Ross and other members of Community Council recognized the merit of this suggestion, the installation of such an online database before this year's move-out period seems unlikely. In the meantime, or as an alternative, the database method could conceivably be less technological. Resident advisors might distribute hand-outs to the graduating class, who would then record their unwanted furnishings on paper and post it on the outside of their doors. The administration would then encourage underclassmen to browse the postings and inquire about possible purchases. Or, to avoid the individual hassle of an online database or a door-posting system, the College could sponsor a one-day auction in the spring, perhaps on the final day of classes.

Despite such an array of suggestions, many present at the April 14 meeting continued to favor a student-run collection in the spring and a sale of items in September. The transaction should occur during the fall, they argued, because underclassmen are short on time during spring finals and may not be able to devote energy to dorm shopping amidst the stress of pending projects and exams.

In addition to these potential initiatives, the Recycling Center has already begun attempts to reduce discarded materials. According to Ross, special collection sites are available throughout the campus in May - especially in the common rooms of dormitories - where students can separate their books, clothing, beauty items and other miscellaneous things.

Ross hopes to model exemplary move-out procedures with a documentary to be aired in the College's library.

"I think we lay it out for our students pretty well," she said. "We bring [the separated materials] to the trailer and put it back out to our Middlebury students."

To further improve these current efforts, Caitlin Sargent '08.5 suggested that signs above collection sites include a more detailed description of acceptable materials.

Council representative and Counter Worker Barista Michael Glidden also proposed the circulation of colored garbage bags to facilitate sorting processes, with books, textiles and other categories each receiving their own respective color.

At the close of the April 14 meeting, the Community Council said they would follow up on their brainstorming results with the Student Government Association to attain a student perspective on the matter. The Recycling Center representatives expressed gratitude for so many excellent ideas, and Ross explained that the door-posting methods may be possible for this upcoming May. In the following months, they will explore their new ideas and continue efforts to reduce move-out waste.