O’Donnell Hall to become co-ed in order to combat “The Smell”
Marquette University announced that O’Donnell Hall will become co-ed this upcoming academic year in order to combat “The Smell” in the building. The residence hall was originally going to be closed for the 2016-‘17 year so that the university could determine how to best contain The Smell in collaboration with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We have seen similar outbreaks of The Smell before in halls like McCormick and Schroeder,” said Dr. Jonas Elliott, a researcher in CDC’s Viral Special Pathogens Branch. “Those instances don’t even come close to what we are seeing in O’Donnell.”
O’Donnell Hall has been home to first-year male students since 1950. In order to prepare the building for the change, the university will update the building’s wireless connection, refurbish the lobby, and change the iconic “Man Cave” into the “Gender Neutral Cave.”
“We believe these changes are necessary,” Elliot went on. “Going co-ed has worked remarkably well in previous cases of Smell. Hopefully it can help the 66 years’ worth of it in this building.”
According to the World Health Organization, 2 out of 5 people say they cannot even smell it and think you are crazy. “These 3 out of 5 are often the ones we need to worry about,” said Pete Townshend of the WHO. “We have found strong correlations between those who have smelt it and those who have dealt it.”
The university will continue their evaluation of The Smell throughout the summer before students move in the fall.
