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New cafe to open in Tawes Hall in April Creative Commons to serve similar snacks and drinks as 11 other cafes in academic buildings By Hannah Lang @hannahdlang Staff writer Students traveling across Tawes Plaza will soon be able to grab a snack in the new cafe opening in Tawes Hall. Dining Services will open the
The Total landfill diversion rate at this university fell to 83 percent in 2015, a drop of 6 percentage points from 2014. enoch hsiao/the diamondback
said. “We’re really looking forward to it.” Creative Commons will join the 11 other cafes housed in academic Creative Commons cafe in April, Dining Services spokesman Bart buildings across the campus. This Hipple said. The space is under cafe will serve similar snacks and construction on the lower level of drinks such as coffee, soda and cereal Tawes, which houses the American bars, among others, and will accept studies and English departments, Terp Bucks this semester and dining and is committed to opening before dollars — in accordance with the new dining plan — in the fall, he said. Maryland Day on April 30. As Dining Services prepares to “It’s a cute little place,” Hipple
switch over to the anytime-dining program next semester, it will also encourage students to use these cafes, instead of the dining halls, as social spaces, said Colleen Wright-Riva, Dining Services director. Creative Commons will serve this purpose by extending into an open area of tables and chairs, which will accommodate students who want to study or talk See CAFE, Page 8
Landfill diversion, recycling rates drop By Lindsey Feingold @lindseyf96 Staff writer Last year, this university experienced decreased landfill diversion rates and individual recycling rates compared with its rates from 2014, officials said. The university’s total landfill diversion rate fell from 89 percent in 2014 to 83 percent in 2015, said Bill Guididas, University Recycling and Solid Waste Program coordinator. However, the decrease in the diversion rate — the amount of waste on the campus that is collected for recycling instead of being put i n a l a nd f i l l — does not wor r y Guididas, who noted that 2014’s high diversion rate was partly due to increased construction on the campus, such as demolition for
BICYCLE BUILT FOR ALL Cyclists pedal down Campus Drive. A city-university bike-share program will launch in May, with seven stations on the campus and seven stations elsewhere in the city.
See RATE, Page 2
Long-delayed bike-share program to launch in May
Res Life calendars scrutinized RHA Senate urges dept to cut $19,870 planner initiative By Zach Melvin @ZachM3lvin Staff writer Next year, the dorm desks of incoming students could be a little bit emptier. The Residence Hall Association Senate unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday urging the Department of Resident Life to discontinue printing student planners for on-campus residents. Typically, the planners are provided to students who live in dorms when they move in. “The question you have to ask is: What is the purpose of these calendars? And to that I have no answer,” said Steve Chen, a junior biology and individual studies major. “I guess to me, it’s to practice recycling.” Resident Life has traditionally printed 14,000 planners each year. For the 2015-16 academic year, the cost was $19,870. According to the resolution, the vast majority of students never touch the planners. “It’s a huge waste of paper, and I think it’s a huge waste of funds,” said Sasha Galbreath, a junior government See RHA, Page 3
By Hannah Lang @hannahdlang Staff writer A long-awaited bike-share program will become a reality this spring when 14 bike stations are installed across College Park, said
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to pass.” The City of College Park and this university received a $375,000 grant in 2012 from the state to operate a bike-share program. A plan to bring Washington-based Capital Bikeshare to College Park was derailed in 2014 when the company that manufactured the bicycles filed for bankruptcy. Instead, the city and university partnered with bikesharing company Zagster, a company that has been successful at other universities such as See BIKES, Page 3
Res Life unveils proposed fee increases for 2016-17 housing Rates for standard doubles would rise by less than 4 percent By Zach Melvin @ZachM3lvin Staff writer The Department of Resident Life has unveiled its proposed fee structure for the 2016-17 academic year, and not all housing rates are increasing equally. While the rate for standard doubles in traditional halls is increasing by less than 4 percent, fees for singles and rooms with bathrooms are going up almost 7 percent. The disparity reflects progress toward a more differentiated housing rate structure, designed to base fees on the number of room occupants and amenities such as air conditioning and bathrooms. “It really is an implementation that started last year,” said Mike Glowacki, Resident Life’s assistant to the director. “Prior to this year,
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Terry Schum, the city’s planning director. Starting May 4, 120 bikes will be available for use at seven bike stations on the campus and seven stations in the city. Schum said that while the locations are not yet finalized, people can expect to see stations in downtown College Park, the College Park Metro station, Domain College Park on Mowatt Lane, the Hollywood neighborhood and Northgate Park just south of The Varsity. “People are very much looking forward to this system,” Schum said. “We’ve been talking about it for four years, and it’s finally coming
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TheDiamondback
most spaces cost about the same. We got a lot of support to change the way we do things.” The plan for the differentiated rate structure, designed in conjunction with the Residence Hall Association Senate, is to phase in fees over a fiveyear period, Glowacki said. After the phase-in, all fees should increase by the same percentage. Among the highest fee increases are those for singles with individual bathrooms. Students with these rooms next year will pay 9.15 percent more than they would have paid this academic year. Meanwhile, fee changes for triples and quads without bathrooms are among the lowest increases, rising less than 3.5 percent for those without air conditioning. Glowacki added that most of the university’s peer institutions have differentiated housing rates. Junior criminology and criminal justice major Jason Bounds said the differentiated rates are a welcome change for students who want to choose the kind of housing they live in. “It’s really nice being able to have
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housing rates would increase by less than 4 percent for standard doubles in traditional dorms and by about 7 percent for singles and rooms with bathrooms under the proposed structure for next academic year. file photo/the diamondback that option to select where you would is a lot better.” like to live,” Bounds said. “There’s However, students often don’t that economics side of it, that Mary- have complete control over housing. land is kind of like forcing people to pay, so definitely giving that choice See FEES, Page 3