Put a Playground on the West Quad

Of all the shortcomings associated with Loyola’s Campus Plan, one oversight may just be the most devastating of all — the lack of a place for Loyola students to play. 

Loyola should put an adult playground on the West Quad. 

Long gone are the days of flying through the air on a swing set with friends, feet swinging freely over the heads of compatriots waiting for their turn in the sky. It seems the second a student says goodbye to elementary school, so too do they say goodbye to sunny afternoons filled with slides and the tenuous playground politics of freeze tag. 

Playgrounds are important for childhood development, proven to have positive effects on social and mental health, in addition to facilitating increased physical activity, according to a 2024 study on playground usage.

Moreover, playgrounds help foster autonomous decision-making and present new, potentially challenging tasks and friendships, according to a 2022 study analyzing playground usage by 9 to 12 year olds. 

There’s a plethora of evidence touting playgrounds as necessary for kids’ personal development. Situational acumen, pushing physical and social boundaries and socializing with others are all necessary skills developed during childhood — but shouldn’t they be improved in adulthood as well?

College is, arguably, the infancy of adulthood — a period of life known for abundant opportunities and radical personal growth. 

Undergraduate years are seemingly synonymous with discovering self-determination and personal autonomy, as students who are leaving home — often for the first time — must learn to balance the freedom and responsibilities of adulthood like never before. 

College life is also brimming with personal, professional and academic challenges. It’s almost an expectation for students to be consistently pushing their limits, whether by tackling a particularly difficult assignment, applying for internships on top of piling schoolwork or partying non-stop for an entire weekend. 

More than this, college is often regarded as the social epitome of one’s life. The only era when one is thrown into a whirlwind of hundreds — if not thousands — of like-minded individuals in the same phase of life 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 

A playground on the West Quad would undoubtedly help students fulfill these pillars of the college experience, transposing the structures’ proven developmental benefits to adult circumstances. 

Students stressed about their future can work their way up, pondering career paths while literally swinging back and forth on monkey bars. Individuals seeking to expend restless energy before an exam can climb a jungle gym, while those who want to take a mid-afternoon nap can rest in a cool, dark tunnel. 

Above all else, a playground would serve as a gathering space for students just looking to socialize. Freer than Damen Student Center, but more structured than the sprawling East Quad, a playground would allow students opportunities for organized entertainment and easy conversation alike. 

Enabling interactions between students has become imperative, as loneliness epidemics sweep through U.S. communities and college campuses. Especially for members of Generation Z, often called “the loneliest generation,” as 73% report feeling lonely due to overstimulation, social media addiction and decreased dependency on other people, according to Psychology Today. 

A West Quad playground would not only help curb these troubling statistics, but would also contribute to the quintessential college experience. It would encourage students to spend more time outside — diminishing screen time and improving mental health. 

There’s a reason first-year orientation is filled with outdoor games — why can’t they last all four years? College life should be littered with moments of frivolity and fun, nuggets of nostalgia nestled between grueling assignments and existential dread. A West Quad playground would make these instances not only more prevalent, but more possible. 

The West Quad is rarely used outside spike ball or frisbee practice, anyway. Loyola should seal the deal and commit to whimsy. We, as neophytes of adulthood and Ramblers in every sense of the word, deserve a place to ponder, pursue personal growth and — most importantly — play.