This is a busy time on campus, with students wrapping up classes, taking finals, and moving out of the residence halls. Each year, Housing & Dining Services coordinates the Move Out process and does everything possible to provide resources and opportunities to help students find alternatives to throwing things away.
What to do with all the stuff?
As students pack up and prepare to move out of the residence hall rooms they have occupied for the past one or two semesters, many will likely realize that they have more stuff than they are able to take with them. With approximately 5,650 students moving out between Monday and Saturday, thousands of pounds of excess items will get stored for re-use when students return to campus in the fall, find new homes through donations, or make their way to recycling bins.
Students are learning that there are many options to sustainably pack up their rooms. A component of sustainability education on campus is creating an awareness of how much students buy and bring to campus in the first place.
“At the beginning of each semester, HDS reminds students to look ahead and know that they will need to move out all their belongings at the end of the year. However, it’s a challenge, because enthusiastic students often bring lots of things to furnish and decorate their new homes on campus,” said Kirstie Tedrick, sustainability project manager with HDS.
Fine-tuning the collection process
Over the years, HDS has been refining the Move Out process and reducing waste. Aiding in this effort has been a longtime partnership with CSU Surplus Property to collect reusable items and either sell them or responsibly recycle them.
“In the past we collected all the donations and worked with Surplus Property for many weeks, sorting and pricing items to be sold in a community-wide sale,” said Mary Liang, assistant director of sustainability for HDS. “But this became a huge endeavor that required a lot of staff and monetary resources. The last straw was when the City of Fort Collins required CSU to hire police to help direct traffic for the sale. The event became too large for us to manage with our limited resources,” added Liang.
“After that, HDS shifted to a donation model – instead involving non-profits and charities through which we could give back to the community, since we didn’t have a space to hold on to and store items.” Surplus Property continues their involvement this year, keeping mini fridges and microwaves out of the landfill by pulling them aside for re-sale or diverting them to appropriate recycling facilities.
Pack it. Store it. Donate it.
Through this new donation model, called “Pack it. Store it. Donate it.” students are provided with options for what to do with their excess things at Move Out. They are encouraged to either pack their belongings to take with them, store things on campus or through local storage companies, or donate unwanted items at on-campus donation stations for distribution to local charities.
Local beneficiaries include the ARC Thrift Store, Goodwill, ChairTableHome LLC, Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountain, Salvation Army, Second Chance Plants NOCO. New this year, HDS is utilizing grant money provided by the HDS and CSU sustainability funds to collect and recycle mattress toppers. Big and bulky, foam toppers can occupy lots of landfill space. Hundreds of foam mattress toppers will be kept out of the waste stream and diverted for recycling.
- Donation Stations – Volunteers from campus will be accepting gently-used items (such as clothing, linens, school/household supplies, and functioning small appliances) at trucks/trailers outside of the halls Wednesday, May 10 – Friday, May 12, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (see map below). Items collected benefit several local and regional charities.
- Mattress Topper Recycling –Students are encouraged to bring theirs to one of two collection sites near the residence halls, Wednesday, May 10 – Friday, May 12, from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Volunteers needed
In order for the donation stations to effectively and efficiently collect and sort items, many helpers are needed over three days, May 10-12 to staff both the donation stations and the mattress topper collection sites. Interested in volunteering? Help us keep things out of the dumpsters! Sign up at signup.com/go/UoBnTPe
For more information about how students are preparing for hall Move Out, visit housing.colostate.edu/halls/move-out-spring/#
