The Student Government Association (SGA) voted on Tuesday, April 21 to spend $4,500 on standing desks, walking pads, and yoga balls for the second floor of Rolvaag Memorial Library. The equipment is expected to be purchased before May 31 and available to students in the fall.
Senator Riley Schwinler ’29, who proposed the initiative, said the idea came from watching students improvise study spaces in the gym. “Myself and other students use the treadmills in Skoglund to read books and study, but there is no desk space,” Schwinler said in an interview with The Olaf Messenger.
The $4,500 will come from SGA’s Projects and Capital Fund and cover four standing desks, four walking pads, and four yoga balls, along with shipping and taxes. Chief Information Officer for Libraries and IT Roberta Lembke and Head of Access Services Natalie Berg-Wall helped select durable equipment and identify a location on the second floor, which was recently recarpeted and has open space available.
To address liability concerns, Schwinler worked with St. Olaf General Counsel Carl Crosby Lehmann to draft a waiver that students will sign when returning to campus in the fall. Safety signage will also be posted near the equipment. If theft becomes an issue, yoga balls will move to a checkout system to keep students accountable.
Schwinler said she hopes the project is just a starting point. “I think there is a possibility to expand this,” she said. “Next steps would be adding additional flexible seating and updating the library’s existing furniture, a lot of which is dated.”
Schwinler encourages students to reach out to her or other senators with ideas for future additions.
