Students wait another day to move into their dorms because of continued cleaning

A few students are staying at the Augusta Marriott downtown awaiting their dorm rooms to be cleaned. (photo by Rakiyah Lenon)

By Rakiyah Lenon | Editor in chief

About 30 Augusta University freshmen are waiting until Saturday, Aug. 13, to move into their dorm rooms following the cleanup of mold found in Oak and Elm halls earlier this week.

In a statement from Augusta University released on move-in day, Aug. 10, “an impaired HVAC system, created an environment in which common mold growth was detected in some rooms in Oak and Elm halls.”

The statement mentioned it is believed that current weather conditions also contributed to the issue.

One of the freshman affected by the delay is Nicholas Francois, a kinesiology major. He has a dorm room in Oak Hall residence but currently is staying at the Augusta Marriott downtown.

Though students had the option to stay at the Augusta Marriot at no cost to them, he said many of the students decided to stay where they currently live and wait for their dorms to be cleaned.

“I think there’s only like three of us here right now,” he said. “There aren’t many people around.”

According to Francois, students were initially notified of the situation in an email.

“They called me about an hour after,” he said.

As mentioned in the statement, Francois said he and other students were informed that they would be able to move in to their dorms Saturday, Aug. 13, around 11 a.m.

Despite the inconvenience, Francois said his stay at the hotel has been nice.

“They gave us a gift bag and a Visa card,” he said. “I’ll take it.”

Francois, who was born in Trinidad and moved to Georgia recently, said he is “pretty new to this whole thing.”

According to the university, Corvias, its facilities service provider, is responsible for cleaning and paying for the work that needs to be done.

To read the official statement from AU in its entirety, click here:

Contact Rakiyah Lenon at rlenon@augusta.edu.