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AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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Officials name senior vice president, chief of staff
By Fiona Riley, Assistant News Editor • March 26, 2024

Garbage, vandalism disturb Ivory Tower

Ivory Tower residents awoke to a slew of garbage and pieces of ceiling strewn across their hallway floors this weekend, prompting the University to put a stop to the widespread property destruction, a University spokeswoman said Wednesday.

The University Police Department is actively searching for the individual or individuals behind the damage, using both interviews and video feeds, spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard said.

“This is something that is concerning to the whole community,” Sherrard said.

Four cases of building vandalism were reported to UPD in the first week of September alone. In September 2009, there was only one case of vandalism reported to UPD over the course of the entire month.

The increase in vandalism prompted GW Housing Staff to send an e-mail to students Sunday, warning Ivory residents of the consequences if it continues.

“The vandalism that has occurred on several floors over the past few days has been significant. Broken ceiling tiles and garbage litter many floors,” the e-mail from house mentors Cathleen Richards and John O’Neill read. “When students and/or guests damage buildings and [U]niversity property, we all deal with the consequences. For example, [U]niversity funding must be utilized to repair damage, therefore decreasing available funding that could be used for more necessary things.”

On Tuesday, members of the housekeeping staff were still dealing with a substantial amount of garbage and tiles that were ripped from the ceiling and scattered in the elevators and throughout the halls.

“You’d think people would take better care of this dorm,” Ivory resident Jessica Sommerville said. “I’m surprised kids our age act this way.”

Sommerville, a junior, said she has also had to deal with having raw egg splattered on her windows.

“It’s funding we won’t have for other things now. I don’t think being drunk is a good excuse,” she said, referring to the belief that the vandalism was caused by intoxicated students.

Ivory Tower vandalism is not a new phenomenon – similar destructive acts have plagued the building since it opened in 2004. Ivory community directors sent out an equally stern e-mail in November 2009 when the incidents of vandalism began occurring more frequently.

“These acts include breaking ceiling tiles, tearing down of bulletin boards, and profuse littering in the halls and elevators,” a community director said in an e-mail to last year’s Ivory Tower residents.

There have been no reports of catching vandals in the act, but students were asked over the weekend to report any vandalism they may have witnessed to UPD immediately. Students may report anonymously, the e-mail said.

“It is only the very beginning of the year and we want to ensure a safe, undamaged environment,” the e-mail read.

Some residents, such as senior Greg Harris, believe the University should invest in increasing security over the weekend.

“We need more UPD patrolling the halls on weekend nights,” he said.

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