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K-State Today

October 6, 2017

A space just for graduate students: Graduate Student Space now available in Eisenhower Hall

Submitted by Kelsey Peterson

The Graduate Student Council and Graduate School had a great reason to celebrate on Sept. 29. It marked the opening of the new Graduate Student Space. The Graduate Student Council mixer introduced graduate students to the new third floor of Eisenhower Hall and served as a social before the B-52s performance at McCain Auditorium.

Graduate Student Space

The Graduate Student Space offers a new space for graduate students from all disciplines to gather for research and social functions. The area has both social and quiet study space, as well as rooms to reserve for group meetings, collaborative research space, or to hold recurring GTA office hours during the semester.

Faculty and graduate students from the departments of history and modern languages once occupied the third floor of Eisenhower Hall. Now the Graduate School occupies the majority of the third floor along with a few GTA offices in the modern languages department.

Ten of the 14 rooms are renovated for use at this time. As the remaining rooms become available, the Graduate School will make announcements through internal communications. See pictures of the third-floor renovation project online

The Graduate School recognizes that some graduate students do not have a private space where they can meet with students enrolled in their classes. Graduate teaching assistants who are required to hold office hours as part of their TA assignment, but do not have a private space where they can meet with students, may reserve one of the rooms for up to one hour a week for each class they are teaching or are assigned as a GTA.

In addition to offering collaborative space for graduate students to conduct research or hold GTA office hours, there is a Graduate Student Lounge. The lounge offers a place to encourage social interaction, collaboration and partnership among graduate students across all disciplines. As a central gathering place for graduate students, the lounge features a variety of seating types, a media nook and a kitchenette with refrigerator and microwave. The Graduate School welcomes ideas for movie nights, watch parties, etc. Please email Kelsey Peterson at kp4048@k-state.edu with ideas.

Graduate students, who are also parents, have expressed interest in having a space where their children can play while they work. The Parent Work Space will offer children of graduate students a chance to play while their parent(s) work on his or her research or scholarly work. The room includes a wall for children to draw with chalk!

Also on the third floor is a campus partner's satellite meeting room. Representatives from the Career Center and Powercat Financial will meet exclusively with graduate students at select times in 312 Eisenhower Hall during the semester. Other K-State student service units interested in setting meeting times for graduate students in 312 Eisenhower Hall should contact Megan Miller at mmmiller@k-state.edu for more information.

Since the Graduate School received the space in spring 2017 as part of the Space Migration allocation process in 2016, Graduate School staff and students worked to renovate the space by painting and integrating old and new office furniture throughout the third floor. Conscious of the current budget climate, the Graduate School team designed color schemes around free furniture, organized paint parties of graduate student volunteers, and solicited contributions of original art to renovate the rooms. The funds spent to renovate each room was $250 on average, with the least expensive room $57.

Donations are still being accepted for items to be included on the third floor. The following items are needed:

  • Children's books and toys
  • Fans
  • Desk and floor lamps

Questions about the third-floor space should be directed to the Graduate School at gradschoolrooms@k-state.edu