TMC makes changes to Loj student group use policy

The Tufts Mountain Club (TMC) recently changed its Loj group use policy, requiring student groups to sign up with a specified number of bunk beds and pay as a unit instead of as individuals.

The Loj, located in Woodstock, N.H., is owned by Tufts and run by TMC, according to the TMC website. It houses 48 bunk beds, and though it serves primarily as a retreat for TMC, there is limited space for other student groups as well.

In the past, student groups would pay based on the number of individuals they were bringing to the Loj, which presented a problem for TMC, according to TMC President Charlotte Clarke. Student groups would typically reserve dates for Loj use in the beginning of the semester, but would often show up with either extra people or fewer people than had been originally planned. With the policy change, student groups will be able to reserve rooms of six, eight or 10 bunks, and they will now pay TMC for the number of beds reserved rather than the number of individuals attending.

According to Clarke, the new policy will make it up to the group to commit to a specific number of bunk beds for their members.

“The idea is that [student groups] have that initial commitment that they are going to be paying for those bunks as one unit, and so then it’s on the club to fill those spots and change numbers around accordingly," she said.

Before this policy change, the numbers of people that groups reported would be at the Loj were unreliable, affecting how bunks were allocated on the weekends, according to Clarke.

“Sometimes people have busy schedules and would flake and then numbers would change last minute, and it really affected our operations of our Loj and [our ability] to allow other club members to come up," Clarke, a senior, said.

This change offers more transparent transactions between student groups and TMC, Clarke said.

“We are basically changing it to a tier-based pricing for our rooms, so that groups know exactly what to expect -- one room with a specific number of bunks," she said. "And it also helps us because then we aren’t shuffling people around at the Loj, and we know exactly what to expect with where they are going to be staying.”

Senior Kentaro Okazaki, current member and former president of the Japanese Culture Club (JCC), said that based on his experience with the Loj reservation process, the changes are a step up from previous policies.

“I think it’s a good system, and definitely it sounds more organized,” Okazaki said. "For those new members and groups that have never gone to Loj before, this [policy] allows [for] an easier time with planning and logistics for the group.”

Okazaki said when he went to the Loj with JCC his first year, there weren’t enough bunks, so the group had to resort to sleeping on couches and sharing bunk beds.

It will also help differentiate student groups from individuals who come to the Loj on weekends, according to Clarke. Individual TMC members are permitted to stay at the Loj and bring up to four guests with them, according to the TMC website. 

"This new system just makes a little more sense as far as differentiating between groups and individuals, and kind of shifts the onus away from us a little bit so that we make sure the groups are in charge of managing it," she said.

This change in group policy is the first of many to be made regarding Loj sign-ups and regulations, Clarke said. TMC wants to maintain the same fees and access to the space, but the Loj's popularity often leads to overcrowding, she added.

“It sometimes gets to a point where if there are too many people -- which has happened on a couple of occasions. You get into fire safety issues and disturbs the general atmosphere of [a] place that's supposed to be a relaxing space,” she said

Although it is only few weeks into the school year, Loj reservations for the fall semester are already full, Clarke said.

According to Clarke, TMC’s policy still specifies that no more than 20 people from a student group should be at the Loj in order to maintain the quality of the space.

TMC wants make sure the open and shared common space is accommodating for everyone, whether they are from a group or are an individual going up for a hike, she added.

“It’s hard, because we want to be inclusive, but you also have to be realistic about the community that is there, and how you want to build that community," Clarke said.