Students will soon be able to study after midnight at a new study space in Kerckhoff Hall.
The study space, which will be located at the Academic Affairs Commission Office in Kerckhoff 310, will open to students Wednesday. The space aims to provide more study areas for students, especially those who want to study late in the night, said undergraduate student government academic affairs commissioner Divya Sharma.
“The university hasn’t been supportive of creating new study spaces,” Sharma said. “So this is a student-initiated study space at UCLA.”
Students will swipe their BruinCards to access the study space, which seats about 10 students. Sharma said his office will record the number of students utilizing the room and gather feedback from students to create more study spaces on campus.
Sharma said his office plans to invite different campus resource centers, such as the LGBT Campus Resource Center and the Undergraduate Writing Center, to the study space each Wednesday to inform students about mental health and academic resources.
He added the study space will also provide food for students who are food insecure.
Sharma said he thinks USAC officers, who get their own office in Kerckhoff Hall, should make their offices more accessible to students.
“We sometimes see officers get into the idea that ‘We’re here, this is my office,’” he said. “Students pay for the space through student fees, so we need to understand this is the students’ office.”
AAC is also planning on creating an online form for student groups interested in reserving the space to meet, Sharma added.
Sharma said his office allocated $1,497 from the USAC capital contingency fund to renovate his office into the study space. He added he plans to work with Janice Reiff, special assistant to Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Scott Waugh, to address the lack of study spaces on campus.
Reiff said she wants to expand the number of study spaces on campus and rethink what a study space should provide.
“With more students, especially with an increasing number living on or near campus, we simply don’t have enough spaces for students to use for studying,” Reiff said.
She added she think study spaces should accommodate the study habits and needs of today’s students, by providing more electrical outlets and more space for group study.
Simcha Dayan, a third-year psychology student, said she plans to use the new study space.
“I think it’s good to have these study spaces that are more accessible and scattered around the campus,” she said. “I would use the study space, especially if I’m in (Kerckhoff Hall).”