Written for The Argo by Kelsey Lauckner

While Stockton University is buzzing with activity during the week, the weekends are always sure to be a ghost town. 

Since the semester started, every Saturday and Sunday you can find the campus almost deserted. Taking a walk around campus on the weekend entails seeing buildings that were just milling with hundreds of students, completely empty.

One of the major reasons why the campus is vacant is most likely due to the fact that a large portion of the university is commuter students who live at home. Approximately two-thirds of the students are commuters, meaning that over 6,000 graduate and undergraduate students do not live on campus.

Additionally, many residential students who live within a close radius just prefer to be home when the weekend comes. It can be difficult to find things to do on campus, especially when many things are closed.

The dining hall remains busy during the week but practically shuts down during the weekend. Chick-fil-A and Piccola Italia are the only two food vendors with weekend hours. This leaves little food options for students who may not like these choices or want something healthier than they can find at home. 

Although the N-wing, the student buffet, and the Lakeside Lodge are open at certain times on the weekends, a lot of students prefer the dining hall food but can’t get their preferred meals due to it closing. 

For freshmen in Housing 2 and 3, the bathroom cleaning service also stops on the weekends. It is always a bad experience using communal bathrooms when floormates can’t clean up after themselves and there is no one to maintain cleanliness from Friday to Monday morning. 

With so many students going home for so many different reasons, it only causes more students to go home as well. People tend to replicate what their friends and peers decide to do, and many students just go home to fit the status-quo and not be left bored and alone.

If students were more exposed to what the university does offer on the weekends and was encouraged to stay, Stockton would feel like a more active, involved, and comfortable place to be. Although the school may be optimized for commuter students since they make up a majority of those enrolled, they should still account for those who stay and make sure their needs are being met.