In 2025, DU plans to re-launch the Media, Film & Journalism Studies (MFJS), part of the Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences (AHSS) school, in order to “launch a center to reimagine liberal and creative arts education in a way that not only demonstrates its applicability and adaptability across sectors, but also fundamentally changes current educational practices.”
Currently, many undergraduate students avoid the MFJS building. Its location is quite literally on the edge of campus between various homes and apartments. This long walk from Sturm Hall, an estimated 14-15 minutes, has been another reason preventing students from taking classes in the department, in fear of late policies that can affect their grades and later their precious GPAs. But the students who are active inhabitants of MFJS know all too well that MFJS is limited with its capabilities.
Imagine being a student with your first class in MFJS in the middle of winter. You walk past the lobby, dodging the huge leak from the ceiling. You enter a classroom where the A/C unit is constantly turning on and off every five minutes for the duration of two hours. For those wary of cold, be warned. Or better yet, imagine being in class observing issues with the projection screens in nearly all the classrooms or limited classroom space leading to scheduling between 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays. This environment challenges the concept of having a comfortable, functioning space to learn.
But, even with their adversity, MFJS provides an extensive amount of resources for students in heavy editing courses: 24-hour access to computer labs, equipment training, access of cameras, lights, microphones and even Macbooks. With the importance of these resources and a planned relocating of the MFJS building near the central hub of campus, is there any way to “fix” some of the building’s issues before the official transition in 2025? It seems difficult enough to spend the next four years with students adapting to learning in cold conditions, malfunctioning classroom technology and a lack of space to “provide limitless, imagination, innovation and experimentation.” Myself as well as other MFJS students and staff would gladly prefer some minor updates to the building prior to the launch of the new center. The one thing I ask for is to fix the A/C.
