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At UCLA, a partnership between the design research center cityLAB, university administrators, and student groups, has officially opened the BruinHub, a first-of-its-kind space serving UCLA students facing long commutes or housing insecurity. This home-away-from-home, located at the heart of campus in the John Wooden Center, is a 24/7 space with facilities for students to nap, stay overnight, study, store belongings, and wait out traffic. Where other universities set up shelter beds for overnight emergency housing, UCLA has created a brilliantly colored lounge that is a magnet for its commuters.

The eye-popping BruinHub is designed to delight and honor a group of students who for various reasons are unable to live on or near campus. It features giant jellybean-like “pods” conceived by cityLAB-partner and architect Marta Nowak with her graduate students in Architecture and Urban Design. The pods are prefabricated units constructed from machine-cut plywood, finished with vibrant paint and upholstery. Each pod contains a full length cushion plus pillow that can be positioned for sleeping or studying, as well as a reading lamp, ambient lighting, power outlet, and privacy screen. Housed within polka-dotted walls of a former squash court, the facility also includes WiFi, lounge areas, cafe-style workstations, refrigerator and food prep area, personal storage, and nearby showers.

The BruinHub is the result of years of research and advocacy by cityLAB, UCLA Student Affairs, the UCLA Community Programs Office, the First Year Experience Office, UCLA Basic Needs, and the Bruin Commuter Students Association, who worked together under the banner of the “BruinHub Coalition.” Nowak, working alongside cityLAB Project Director Gus Wendel, gathered input from students experiencing extreme commutes and housing insecurity, in order to understand their common routines and needs, all of which informed the final design.

The COVID-19 pandemic along with high cost of housing in Los Angeles have pushed more students to live further from campus. A 2019 study conducted by cityLAB found that 43% of UCLA students commute over 60 minutes to campus one-way, and that 42% of these long-distance commuters had slept overnight on or near campus instead of returning home. The same survey found that 14% of long distance commuters had experienced homelessness. As a result, student groups continue to advocate for safe overnight parking and the expansion of the BruinHub. Another group of pods will soon be delivered to campus.

Research also shows that, due to the pandemic, 78% of students nationwide are exhibiting at least mild anxiety and 63% were not able to concentrate on schoolwork. At UCLA, 46% of first year commuting students reported experiencing a lack of consistent WiFi. The strain of transport, housing, and disruption has caused 32% of respondents to consider withdrawing or deferring from their course. The university sees the BruinHub as part of a broader strategy to address these concerns through the use of on-campus facilities and resources, to reduce the number of students seeking rest in cars or temporary living arrangements.

The BruinHub was launched on September 23rd, and fully opened to students on September 27th.

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BruinHub FAQ

What is BruinHub? Who is it serving? The BruinHub is a space for students to wait out traffic, rest, study, store belongings, and access valuable information and resources. Located in the heart of campus at the John Wooden Center, the BruinHub is conceived as a 24/7 on-campus space for commuting students.

Why the Strathmore Building? The decision to allocate space at the Strathmore Building for commuter needs is among several new campus basic need services opening at the Strathmore Building aimed at addressing the wider affordability crisis affecting students. The Strathmore Building is located in the heart of campus, providing a source of convenient, centralized and coordinated support.

What is the “BruinHub Coalition”? The BruinHub Coalition is comprised of student commuter advocates such as the Bruin Commuters, as well as a unique team of campus administrators like UCLA Basic Needs, The First Year Experience Office, UCLA Recreation, Housing, and Transportation, and UCLA Student Affairs, and finally a research arm represented by cityLAB.

We are not the only entities one campus working on student housing insecurity--rather, this Coalition is focused around this specific space designed for and by student commuters. Other entities on campus working on housing insecurity including Safe Parking coalition, USAC, and Students 4 Students.

Is the BruinHub an alternative to what advocates are referring to as “Safe Parking”? At cityLAB we don’t view the BruinHub as an alternative to Safe Parking. Rather, the BruinHub--like Safe Parking--is just one among a suite of options that can begin to address--but not solve in its entirety--the larger issue of student housing insecurity and long commutes.

Safe parking is also part of a mosaic of possible approaches, and is one that can serve an immediate need in lieu of a space where students can sleep overnight on campus.

But we shouldn’t limit ourselves to safe parking alone, which, while potentially providing short-term relief, is arguably not the most dignified solution possible.

What is the difference between Safe Parking and BruinHub? At its most basic, Safe Parking provides individuals a safe place to park each night, restroom access, a security guard, and social service resources. This is something we think the university should be able to do relatively easily and would not require the involvement of a design research center like cityLAB.

In its current vision, the range of services provided by the BruinHub is much more expansive than Safe Parking. The call for this kind of multi-service space has grown out of years of student commuter and basic needs activism--a space on campus specifically oriented towards commuter needs.

What stage of the BruinHub project are we currently in? The BruinHub was launched on September 23rd, and fully opened to students on September 27th. Work is continuing to identify more spaces on campus to expand and proliferate hub spaces.