Nishant Thangada ’19, Jonathan Huang ’19:
The senior lounge will be undergoing a series of renovations to accommodate for the historically large Class of 2019. Currently a short, crowded hallway with compacted lockers and little to no space for people to sit and engage with each other, the senior lounge, located in the campus center, is believed by many to lack the space necessary for an entire grade. Olivia Cunningham ‘18 says, “The lounge is so small and if everyone has free time it’s way too crowded.”
Mike Letts, Interim Head of Upper School, expands upon the senior lounge’s downfalls, saying, “It’s not a good space, it’s cramped, it’s dark, there isn’t enough seating, and many don’t even use their lockers … I come around the corner and there are people sitting on the floor. It can’t be all that comfortable.” He continues, “The idea to renovate the senior lounge came as a part of the expansion of the dining hall.”
After an architect was brought in to talk strictly about the cafeteria renovation with Letts, Steve Morris, Head of Middle School, and Terrance Malone, Head of Lower School, ideas were proposed to also make some renovations to the adjacent senior lounge. The architect spotted key mechanical regions that could be adapted to accommodate a reconstruction which would, as Letts describes it, “make the senior lounge a better place and environment.”
The money needed to undertake the cafeteria renovations is being provided by an unnamed donor, not the school’s endowment, making further renovations to the senior lounge fall within the realm of possibility.
When Cheryl Mclauchlan, V Form Dean, was asked about the renovation, she was primarily concerned that the lounge was not a welcoming and open space. She says, “I’m not sure if the senior lounge is an effective space right now. When kids have to sit on the floor by the lockers because there’s nowhere to sit, it seems like somebody could restructure the space so that there are working and sitting areas and it could be a better learning environment than it presently is.” She also expresses how there are no windows either, contributing to the darkness, lack of attractiveness, and unwelcoming environment of the senior lounge.
Photo Courtesy of Jessica Brady ’18
Mclauchlan further explains that the senior lounge was previously renovated for the Class of 2011, stating, “A renovation has already been done once. When we first moved to this campus, half of the current senior lounge was the dean’s office. We thought when we moved here that seniors would hang out in the cafeteria, which didn’t happen. As a result, for the Class of 2011, we redid the place to how it is right now.”
Several students from the Class of 2019 were excited when informed of the upcoming renovation. Rayhan Ali ‘19 says, “I think it’s pretty cool that we’ll be the first class to use a new senior lounge. Whenever I walk by it, there are always people sitting on the floor and it always looks crowded, so I’m glad they are making it a better place.”
Praneeth Alla ‘19 shares a similar sentiment: “The senior lounge has always seemed too small and crowded to me. I’m happy they are improving it. I think the renovation will make the lounge much more enjoyable for the entire class.” Kevin Li ‘19 adds on: “It’s nice that they can redesign the lounge for the benefit of our class.”