Businesses in Grambling are now placing signs telling students to park somewhere else. Why are they parking at businesses instead of on campus? That’s because parking on campus has been a major issue for students and faculty for a while.
Students have to leave earlier than they should just to get a decent parking spot.
“I hate that there is NO parking,” Natalia Stroman said. “I have to park at 8 a.m. for my 1 p.m. class to get a spot. Its crazy.”
Why has it been such a major issue? Maybe there aren’t enough parking spots for students.
“Well I think that there should be more parking areas on campus, this should be taken into consideration every semester,” said Timeka Mayfield. “Everybody that is admitted into the university should be counted as having a vehicle because when they come in they may not have one, but when they leave most do.” This right here is an example of why and how parking areas or scarce.”
“Parking has always been a mess at GSU,” Antoinette Riley added. “There just isn’t enough student parking period and then you have on campus people and who take all the commuter spaces.
Computer Science and Biology student Portia Taylor says, “There are not enough parking spaces to accommodate both students and faculty.”
Not having enough parking spots can lead to dysfunctional behavior among students. Destiny Pearson is a witness to this problem saying, “I feel that parking on Grambling state university campus has become a big joke, there isn’t enough parking available for students. It seems as though students fight over parking spots especially for morning classes. Then there is the issue with construction, sense the planning of new building has taken away a lot of land where students use to park, it feels as though you have to search for a parking spot now.”
Transfer student Lynee’ Turner shares her experience of parking at GSU saying, “being a student who commutes and transferring from another school, I must say that I have had an easier time finding parking spaces than elsewhere. I usually can find a spot in the correct area near my building, but during midterms it did pose a slight problem. There should be more and closer parking along the side of Jacob T. Stewart since that is the building where a large mass of Grambling Students have class. I don’t really see the need to have assigned parking. It wouldn’t do anything but tempt students to park in the wrong areas even more than they do now.”
Some even hope that they can come out of class and not see those yellow tickets on their windshields. Students feel that the school is out to make money and not for the best interest of the students. Police are highly active on campus pulling students over, searching their vehicles and getting their books out to impose their authority.
“We are Students,” James Henderson said. “Not criminals. Just trying to go to class and go back to our dorms. And then we are always hassled.”
Maybe students that stay on campus are too lazy to walk. It might be hard for many to determine, but the idea of assigned parking was brought up from the maintenance department.
“As far as assigned parking, i don’t think I’ve heard of that,” Antoinette Riley said.
Assigned parking is every student being assigned a parking spot. This will help off- campus students to have a parking spot and on campus students to take advantage of being located so close to the classrooms.
“Assigned parking would be good but it wouldn’t be effective unless there were more parking made,” Portia Taylor said.
“Assigned parking could be an option if the do it right. Natalia Stroman said.”
Not everyone agreed with the suggestion of assigned parking.
“I also think there should not be assigned parking areas because this also limits parking and as students. Timeka Mayfield said. “We are liable to get tickets if we park in faculty parking when there are no other options!”
According to Destiny Pearson, “assigned parking is really ridiculous because it causes a lot of unnecessary chaos and tickets. It’s just another way for Grambling to make some money. It gives the police something easy to do sense they cant seem to catch real criminals on Grambling’s campus. They still haven’t caught the people who broke into Brown Hall, which is right across the street from the university’s police station what a shame.”