Student Spaces

Bates: The Center of Student Life

This year, Bates has become the hub of student activity on campus. Bates brings all the different aspects of student life together in one place, from the student spaces mentioned below, to the dining hall, to the Offices of Student Affairs, faculty offices and classrooms. The spaces in Bates are brand new; in fact, as renovations wrap up, some are still in progress. And while the spaces in Bates differ in character and style, they all have one very important thing in common—they are just for students.

Student Spaces in Bates

A*Space

A*Space was created by a group of students who saw the need for additional art space on campus. There is something happening in A*Space on almost any given night, whether it’s a showing of student artwork or a student performance piece. Students can receive funding for A*Space shows from the Undergraduate Student Senate.

The Black Squirrel

The Black Squirrel is a student lounge space with a big-screen TV, comfortable seating, and a variety of games and activities, including table tennis, dart boards, chess boards and other board games. It also features grab-and-go food in the evening as well as other amenities that entice students to just kick back and relax.

The Club Space

The Club Space is a large space for club members to work on club activities, providing them with supplies ranging from a copy machine to a button maker, in addition to a number of computers. Located within the Club Space is a small meeting room available to all clubs, as well as the shared Student Senate and Programming Board office.

Common Ground

Common Ground's mission is to serve students of color and student of color identity groups, as well as to engage the Sarah Lawrence Community in discussions about the perceptions, realities, and consequences of racial and ethnic identity in our society and in the world at large. The space serves as a meeting room, event space, lounge area, and resource center for students of color and members of APICAD, Harambe, Unidad, or any other student of color identity group. While Common Ground works primarily with the student of color identity groups, it also hosts events with other student organizations and faculty or administrative offices that are committed to campus dialogues surrounding issues of multiculturalism and racial and ethnic diversity. Common Ground programming includes speakers, performances, discussions, movie nights, conferences, workshops, and other activities.

The Basement

The Basement is available for both public and private student events. All events in The Basement must be registered with the Office of Student Affairs.

The Sloan Kamenstein ’90 and Tracy Kamenstein Markin ’86 Blue Room

The Blue Room is a programming space available for open campus events. It is a popular place for students to host concerts, dances and small theatre performances.

The Spirituality Space (Bates)

The Spirituality Space offers an atmosphere, a sense of the holy and a refuge for contemplation, both individually and collectively. This carefully designed space has an interior that is minimally furnished enabling visitors to engage freely in personal introspection, meditation or prayer. The Spirituality Space is a designated “quiet space” to help find the inner calm in a place where everyone is always safe and welcome. The Spirituality Space will open in late spring 2006.

Student Publications Space (Bates)

The Student Publications space provides computers, printers, and other amenities for the writers and editors of SLC’s numerous student publications, including The Phoenix and SLC literary journals. For use of this space, please contact the Student Publications Space Manager through the Office of Student Activities.

The Ruth Leff Siegel Center (The Pub)

This informal social center of the campus is open seven days a week, serving short-order food and refreshments. The Center has a terrace for outdoor activities, a viewing room with a large-screen TV, a pool table, and an additional wing with multipurpose space for meetings, discussions, readings, and performances. This new center opened in winter of 1998 after having been expanded to twice its original size.

The Teahaus (North Lawn)

The Teahaus, or Communitea House, is a small stone building in the center of campus that provides a quiet space for reading, reflection and conversation. This student-run space offers light refreshments and a wide range of international teas. All profits benefit the Students for Students Scholarship Fund. The Teahaus is open during the day and sometimes hosts special poetry readings, study groups and open mic nights.