No more hunting for somewhere to charge laptops or study between classes—new furniture is rolling out in several locations across main campus with a focus on better access to power and better spaces to work from.
After hearing from students that they wanted more seating and more places to charge their devices, NAITSA VP Internal Brayden Shopland advocated to NAIT’s Campus Planning department in their monthly meetings.
NAIT found a surplus in December and allocated some of it to upgrading furniture in key areas. “It’s an ongoing cycle to have the furniture renewed,” said Stacy Nyholt, Manager of Campus Planning and Architecture. Some of the areas are “well overdue” for an upgrade, like W building, where Nyholt shared that much of the furniture had been there since the building opened in 2006. “So, we’re coming up on 20 years. It was well past its lifespan.”
The new furniture is from the same line as those replaced in 2023, featuring durable finishes meant for long-term use.
Some of the areas slated for upgrade include:
- W building: the seating on the main floor along the windows has “doubled,” said Nyholt. There are new couches in the study lounge on the second and third floors, along with furniture better suited to studying. “[It’s] less lounge with coffee table, and more sit and work at a table,” she explained.
- CAT200: While on a walk-through, Shopland and Nyholt noticed that many of the existing furniture in the second-floor CAT study lounge was blocking available electrical outlets. “It’s not that NAIT needs to install new outlets, it’s just, move the booth three feet to the left,” said Shopland. The CAT 200 installation was done in two parts because it was a “massive installation,” Nyholt said. “Again, more power, more seating to support working at.”
- Hallways in Y and X-building: Many of the hallways featured electrical outlets but no seating nearby, said Shopland. “There [are] hallways with electrical outlets every 10 feet, but there’s no furniture there. So, are you supposed to sit on the floor and charge your laptop?” questioned Shopland. Seating will be added in these areas, giving students more effective places to work and lounge.
Both Nyholt and Shopland are excited about how the new furniture will impact student life.
“This is where the community comes together, in these sort of informal spaces that support group work, they support us just hanging out, they support us working,” said Nyholt. “It’s a really important piece to have enough and to have the right kind of stuff.”
“It’s not something big and grandiose thing, but it is advocacy,” said Shopland. “It’s something we heard from students, and now it’s something that we’re bringing in and trying to make a little bit better for their day-to-day experience.”
This article was originally published in the Nugget’s March 12 issue
Photos by Skylar Boissonnault
