Views On Vassar | Students should clean their own bathrooms

We are slovenly loafers. From clumps of hair left in shower stalls to greenish-yellow phlegm left in bathroom sinks, Vassar students seem to have no sense of responsibility towards one another. Even though we have an apparent altruism, which is manifested by opening doors and helping one another, when it comes to conscientiousness there is still much to be desired. In order to develop a sense of responsibility which will eventually lead to maturity, I propose that Vassar students living in dorms clean their own bathrooms.

First, having students clean their own toilets would ensure that dorm residents would use lavatories appropriately. Most students would agree that dorm bathrooms are frequently in despicable condition. If students cleaned their own bathrooms, they would discover how hard it is to clean up after someone and would learn to be neater. Granted, some students might continue to misuse toilets for whatever reason, but these incidences would be greatly reduced if students were to do the hard work of cleaning toilets. Cleaning their own toilets would teach students to be accountable for their own actions, a virtue that I believe is sorely lacking in Vassar’s student body.

Additionally, requiring students to do chores would ensure that students develop a work ethic. The routine that is currently in operation, in which residents in dormitories have workers literally doing their dirty work for them, is untenable. Our society is based on work ethic; individuals must work hard in order to obtain whatever they want to acquire in life. Having people clean up after us gives the false impression that there will always be people to do whatever unpleasent work we do not want to do ourselves. This is obviously not the case in real life. We need to put a stop to this façade for our own good.

Furthermore, cleaning our own bathrooms would instill discipline within the student body. Even though we are expected to be mature, responsible, and orderly young adults, this is often not the case. Introducing this chore and making students complete a task thoroughly by a specific deadline for the benefit of their peers would instill self-control, which we need as future leaders.

One might question the feasibility of such a proposal. How would it be possible to institute this change, particularly since students have differing schedules and are all very busy? This practical concern could be addressed by simply having students sign up for a cleaning slot on a weekly basis. Two students would clean their hall bathroom at least once a week at whatever time they chose. Students in each hallway would take turns cleaning the bathroom until every student on the hall had cleaned the bathroom. This sign-up system would ensure that everyone would be able to clean the toilets in their own free time. A student would only need to spend about 30 minutes cleaning.

One might also raise the concern that having students clean dorm bathrooms would reduce the number of maintenence workers needed, thus eliminating jobs. However, the workers employed by the College who clean our bathrooms also have other tasks, such as cleaning our hallways and kitchens. Cleaning a bathroom does not take long, so the number of hours that Vassar employees would work would not be significantly affected and the College would not need to lay off workers or reduce their wages.

Cleaning bathrooms in a college setting has been proven to work. At Vassar, the experiences of students living in the Terrace Apartments, Town Houses and South Commons have shown that students do have the potential to take responsibility for their own chores. It is possible to clean our own bathrooms and juggle the day-to-day tasks that college life presents. Students in dorm housing need to start doing chores in order to develop the responsibility we need which will help us become self-sufficient adults.