“If you’ve started the housing search a bit late, the newly launched Commuter Central searchable housing database will be even more useful. The site launched a month ago in hopes of making the housing search more user-friendly for the majority of students who attend The University of Akron: commuters.”
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If you’ve started the housing search a bit late, the newly launched Commuter Central searchable housing database will be even more useful.

The site launched a month ago in hopes of making the housing search more user-friendly for the majority of students who attend The University of Akron: commuters.

The new Web site – www.loc101.com/uakron — allows students to search for housing by a variety of factors including price point, location, number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms and square footage.

We wanted to create a search engine that was more user-friendly, Preston Epling, student manager of Commuter Central, said.

Most of the results include images of the properties, additional amenities and contact information.

The Web site also contains a resources guide which provides contact information for legal aid, fire and police departments and off-campus student services.

Similar to the previous Web site, users can utilize the message board component to post information regarding a roommate search, subleases and a forum to buy and sell textbooks.

The department expects improvements to be made along the way, but the newly launched site already is a more interactive, searchable database than the department’s previous Web site.

In addition to the newly launched Web site, Commuter Central hosts a week of commuter-centered events. The department caters to the estimated 23,400 commuter population and organizes events that connect students closer to the campus environment.

The housing database is not the only outreach that Commuter Central provides students.

Our goal is to help commuters get more involved on campus. Research shows that 70 percent of learning takes place outside of the classroom. We try to foster relationships and connect commuter students with campus organizations, Epling said.

Commuter Central provides ongoing activities for commuters including Pizza with the Police, Commuter day in the game room and a mentor program.

Next week, March 1 to 5, Commuter Central will host Commuter Week with daily activities focused on commuters in the Student Union. The department estimates that 100 to 150 students participate in each event.

As the campus community continues to grow, Commuter Central looks for new opportunities to service and cater to the increasing number of students who travel to campus.

If landlords would like to include their properties on the Web site they should call 1-800-461-3657 and speak with an employee in the Commuter Central department.

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