The Student Activities office will now be located in the Garrett Ballroom until next semester. 

The office moved after its previous location, Room 13 in Cravens Library, flooded due to a heavy rainstorm that occurred on Feb. 4. Student Activities was slated to remain in Cravens until DSU renovations were complete. 

Stephanie Scott, office coordinator for Student Activities, said the staff reacted to the move quickly.

“They were amazing,” Scott said.

Scott said there was minor floor damage and that those affiliated with Student Activities knew Cravens was flood prone during the initial move-in. Because of this, those in the office kept important materials away from the ground. 

“We really didn’t lose anything that can’t be replaced,” Scott said. “I think we did pretty good under the circumstances.”

Sturgis senior Chris Hancock, an office worker, said the move itself was untimely.

“It’s been a little bit of a task,” Hancock said. “It’s kind of inconvenient being that it will be a temporary temporary spot since Cravens was already temporary.”

Scott said she hopes that the new location will bring in more students because it is close to places to eat. 

“Hopefully when students come to eat, it would maybe help pull some students up so that they maybe find out a little bit more about the activities and things that they can get involved in, too,” she said.

Scott has been looking on the bright side of things since the move.

“We’re just trying to turn lemons into lemonade,” she said.

The new space does allow people to have more elbow room, said Hancock. 

“In Cravens, everybody was in one consolidated spot and it’s kind of a lot more spread out here,” Hancock said. 

The Student Activities office will move into DSU over the summer, while the ballroom in Garrett will be occupied by another campus entity. 

This is not the first time Cravens has experienced flooding. A rainstorm in 2011 caused several department staffs housed in the building to relocate to Tate Page Hall. 

John Osborne, vice president for campus services and facilities, said Room 13 of Cravens will still be utilized in some capacity. 

“WKU will be attempting to restore the space in a useful fashion for storage in the future with the understanding that, from time to time, it’s going to be flooded,” he said. “We have to take all the necessary precautions and preparations because we do not think there is an affordable repair possible.”