Three freshmen won this year’s room decorating contest.
The contest, hosted by housing officials, was open from Sept. 17-29. Winners were announced Oct. 3.
The contest was created last year. Students posted pictures of their decorated dorms on Instagram and Facebook with the hashtag #myokcuroom.
This year’s contest was done the same way. Avery Bruce, acting freshman won first; Mackenzie Farrell, dance freshman, won second, and Noah Morgan, music theater freshman, won third. Each was awarded a prize by housing officials.
Room decor contests are common at different universities, said Casey Kreger, director of housing and residence life.
“Students live on campus. It’s their home away from home. And some students really put a lot of effort into their spaces,” he said. “It’s something cool and fun that students can do on their own as individuals.”
This year’s prizes were a Chromecast Ultra, a JBL Flip 4 speaker and Apple AirPods. Winners were given the option to choose their prize in order of who won the higher place.
Contest submissions were reviewed and voted on by housing staff, including Kreger, both resident directors, the assistant director, and an administrative assistant. Dorms were judged on four criteria: cleanliness, use of color, creativity, and space utilization.
Bruce said she wanted to make her dorm as homey as possible.
“It’s a very new experience, and I didn’t want it to be boring and feel like I’m at camp,” Bruce said. “I got a lot of warm blankets, I brought a lot of the stuff that I decorated my own room with and lots of plants. I did a lot of DIY stuff. I printed out a crazy amount of pictures.”
The contest is structured so anyone can win, no matter how much money they were able to spend on their decorations, Kreger said. He said the contest gives every student the opportunity to showcase their space and win prizes while being fair to everyone.
Bruce said her room makes her feel closer to home.
“I was proud of my dorm,” Bruce said. “The way you decorate your room can play a major factor in your happiness. It’s like taking a piece of home with you.”
Morgan said he was excited to have his room recognized.
“It was such an awesome experience to have won,” he said. “I think it’s a vital component of living on your own to have a space where you can relax and de-stress from the day.”
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