Some studiers don’t have to worry about being stranded at the library this finals week. The University of Iowa Department of Public Safety is extending Nite Ride service hours this week in order to better serve female students who study into the early morning.
Nite Ride, the free shuttle service offered to women on and near the UI campus, will operate on a 10 p.m.to 6 a.m. schedule through Friday morning. It will then return to normal hours — 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. — Friday evening. Bill Searls, an associate director of Public Safety, said this practice has been in place for the past three years, beginning when the IMU turned into a 24-hour service.
“Students don’t just stop studying at midnight,” Searls said. “It provides longer hours, so they can spend a longer amount of time in the IMU and Main Library.” He said that at one point, the Main Library and IMU closed at midnight, and that created a problem for late-night crammers.
“It’s not uncommon for students to be in a study area until the wee hours of the morning, especially during finals,” he said. UI sophomore Cassidy McDowell said extending Nite Ride hours is a great way to encourage students to keep studying because they don’t have to worry about finding a way home late at night.
“Sometimes, I’ll look down at my phone and realize I had just been studying for three hours straight,” she said. “And suddenly, it’s 2 a.m., and I need to find a ride home.” She said the Nite Ride extension alleviates this issue, and she doesn’t have to worry about getting home safely after studying.
In hopes to ease the pain of finals, Campus Activities Board President Tyler Hackman said the UI is also providing additional services to students this week. He said “Finals @ IMU” activities include showings of the “Big Bang Theory,” therapy dogs, massage chairs, and endless popcorn. Hackman said an exciting new addition to “Finals @ IMU” is viewing “Big Bang Theory,” the highest-rated comedy, twice a day. He said this gives students an opportunity to take a break and laugh off the stress of studying.
“The IMU is definitely the place to be during finals week,” Hackman said. UI junior Jake Glendenning said students get a lot out of the extra services provided during finals week, especially with the free food.
The event setup has worked well in the past, he said, and is beneficial to all students whether it be breakfast after an all-nighter or watching the “Big Bang Theory” to take a break from studying in the afternoon. “I’ve always been someone who snacks while I study,” Glendenning said. “So the IMU really helps by providing breakfast, coffee, and snacks at no cost to me.”