Campus needs real paper towels. Courtesy | EcoRoots

Hillsdale students across campus encountered the same problem this week when they tried to dry their hands after washing them. 

The paper towels in the Student Union, as well as some dorms and academic buildings, were replaced with different ones that disintegrate in wet hands. A college that puts real hand towels in the Searle Center can give dorms and class buildings paper ones that don’t fall apart.

Whereas students used to be able to pull an intact, functional paper towel from the dispenser, they can now only grab shreds until their hands become dry. Even with dry hands, the new paper towels still require a delicate touch to keep in one piece.

Superintendent of Custodial Services Kirk Wright told the Collegian the college has not changed suppliers.

“We haven’t changed towel rolls in the two years I have been in charge,” Wright said. “Maybe the company has changed their product a little, but we as a college haven’t changed anything. I will contact the manufacturer and ask what changed. Something is different.”

According to Wright, the issue is with the supplier, not the college. Still, people should be able to dry their hands without ripping the paper towels to shreds. It may take switching suppliers.

Not every restroom on campus has the new, dysfunctional rolls. But they are spreading, and it seems as if the swaps will continue until all the old rolls are out and all the new ones in. While it may seem a trivial issue, the inconvenience is repetitive and fixable.

Students, professors, and staff alike deserve dry hands. The college should provide paper towels worthy of the name.