Charging Station | Kelsie Tomlinson | The Wright State Guardian
WSU has installed two new secure charging stations for student devices in the Student Union and Dunbar Library. Here is what to know about and how to use the stations.
How the stations were implemented
Director of the Student Union and Campus Recreation Eric Corbitt broached the idea of the charging stations along with other members of staff.
According to Corbitt, the leftover end-of-year funds were available this May, so the charging stations were installed in mid-July. Corbitt saw this as an opportunity to improve the quality of life for students while increasing student-to-student engagement.
“Unfortunately, battery life isn't forever and we need to recharge, and often we would see a student sitting up against the wall next to a plug like you would in an airport,” Corbitt said. “But, you know, one hope is if they have to put their phone in a charging station while they're eating or doing something else, maybe then they're engaging with another student during that time rather than looking at their phone.”
Student Abi Bond had a positive outlook for the charging stations, despite not knowing about the installation.
“I have never used [charging stations] because I hadn’t heard about them, but it’s amazing and I’m sure they’ll be needed in the future,” Bond said.
Mechanics and security
According to Corbitt, the charging stations, purchased from the company ‘goCharge,’ allow for secure storage of students’ devices with a customizable pin that secures contents until a student can retrieve the device.
One station is located in the Dunbar Library group study room by Starbucks and another is located in the basement of the Student Union by the climbing wall.
Corbitt explained how to find and use the stations; once a student has located one of the stations, the right-hand side screen will provide a prompt to select one of the eight available slots. After selecting a slot, the student types in a personal pin to secure the device. Once the device is deposited, a student can retrieve the device with the chosen pin at any time.
Corbitt assured that these stations are secure.
“You know, in order to steal another phone, you would have to have some serious tools and be in there, you know, in very public spaces to get them out. You can't just pick the lock or go up there. I guess technically you could guess the code, but I don't know what the odds are to guess a code,” Corbitt said.
According to Corbitt and Associate University Librarian Mandy Shannon, the feedback about the stations has been positive, despite sparse usage.
“The library is open 98.5 hours a week on average. So we are open a lot of hours and we provide a space to all students, faculty staff across campus and to the community of the area. So it's a really good central location,” Shannon said.
The stations are free for students to use.
