After University of Iowa classes started last week, students have seen an influx of various pests in Slater Residence Hall — specifically cockroaches and mice in rooms and bathrooms.

UI Housing and Dining sent out an email Aug. 25 informing students of the increase in pests and providing various preventative measures. Von Stange, the senior director of University Housing and Dining and assistant vice president for student life, said the problem may be related to how active the dorms are the first few weeks.

“This is the environment [the mice and cockroaches] tend to like with all the construction and buildings being demolished,” Stange said. “Many of them are looking for a new home and therefore have been migrating to Slater.”

Stange said this is not a problem of infestation, and since Slater Hall wasn’t used during the summer, the environment changes entirely when students move in.

The whole building was sprayed on Aug. 8 before students moved in. Stange said these chemicals are not harmful to students and are administered after the students are asked to leave for a short period of time. For those who reported mice in their room, maintenance came in and placed mouse traps.

Stange said problems with pests have not happened in recent years, most recently occurring in 2015-16 when Quadrangle Hall was being demolished. At the time, the UI saw an increase in pests in surrounding buildings.

UI first-year student and Slater Hall resident Lizzie Kilburg, said her recent run-in with a mouse made her uncomfortable.

“It is a new environment and a new home for us freshmen. My initial feelings were annoyance and frustration that this was happening,” Kilburg said.

Kilburg initially assumed the mouse she found came with her from home. However, after further investigation, she realized that a leftover chocolate bar had lured the mouse to her room. The mouse was removed and a trap was set by maintenance.

Mice have only been found in Slater Hall, but there have been sightings of cockroaches in other dorms, such as Rienow, Catlett, and Mayflower Residence Halls.

Stange said students should make sure all food is being put into plastic containers and placed in a high area and any cardboard boxes that cockroaches could get into should be disposed of. He added that students should put in a work order as soon as possible if they see a pest in their dorm.