Weinberg sophomore Melinda Chan will leave early for class so she can use any bathroom but her own in Chapin Hall.

Although Northwestern administrators say housekeepers thoroughly clean residence hall bathrooms daily, students in Chapin and the Communications Residential College say their bathrooms are cleaned sporadically, sometimes only once every two weeks.

“At one point last year, it hadn’t been cleaned in three weeks,” Chan said. “On our floor, there are 30 girls. That’s disgusting — that’s 30 showers a day.”

Bashir Kudsi, executive housekeeping supervisor, said NU housekeepers are supposed to clean bathrooms every weekday and the services are identical in each dorm. They clean the showers and make sure toilet paper and soap are replenished, he said.

Bathrooms might not be cleaned because Chapin’s male housekeeper is not allowed to enter women’s bathrooms when they’re occupied, Kudsi said. He also said students themselves could be part of the problem.

CRC does not have a problem, he said.

“It’s the same chemicals, the same frequency, the same procedure (in every dorm),” Kudsi said. “The only thing different is the students are not the same.”

Not every residence hall complains of inconsistent cleaning, however.

Allison Hall gets cleaned consistently, said dorm president Shawn Basak, a Weinberg freshman.

“I usually see them when I wake up in the morning, just about every day, ” he said.

Kudsi said he tours every residence hall each morning to ensure bathrooms are up to par. Chapin’s usually are, he said.

Some residents of Chapin, where about 25 people share a bathroom, and CRC, where about 10 people share each bathroom, said they doubted cleaning was consistent.

“You can hardly take a shower in there because the water starts filling up because the drains are so clogged,” said Communication freshman Stephanie Kent.

Chan, who lives in Chapin, described dirty counters.

“The water stains on the counter aren’t just water,” she said. “It’s a combination of other liquids, even things like soap and toothpaste.”

But Weinberg freshman Alissa Anderson said the cleaning services in Chapin have been better lately.

Chapin male residents once had to share one roll of toilet paper between two stalls, said former Community Assistant Brandon Ray, a Weinberg senior.

Bathrooms in CRC have been in similar states, said dorm president David Spett, a Medill freshman. There are large puddles around the showers and dried urine is sometimes on the toilet seats, he said.

Cleaning problems could be students’ perception problems, Kudsi said. They may mistake old tile for dirty tile, he said.

“Students shouldn’t make assumptions,” said Jodi Daily, assistant director of residential life. “There are ways for them to find out, before they just make a determination that ‘this isn’t happening.'”

Nevertheless, students in other dorms said housekeepers make their bathrooms sparkle.

“They pick up all the disgusting hair,” said Katherine Veeder, a Medill freshman and the president of Bobb-McCulloch Hall. “They’re here all day.”

Claims of discrepancy in dorm cleaning surprised Daily, who oversees Kemper Hall, Sargent Hall, 1835 Hinman, Slivka Residence Hall, Ayers College of Commerce and Industry and College of Cultural and Community Studies.

“My experience has been the exact opposite,” she said.

To ensure that their residence hall bathrooms are cleaned, students can talk with CAs and their area coordinators, who will contact housing officials, said Virginia Koch, senior assistant director of residential life.

NU dorms overall are known as the cleanest in the Big Ten, and bathroom cleanliness rests largely with students, Kudsi said.

Residents should pick up after themselves, he said. If toilet paper runs out, students can just look in their dorms’ supply rooms, he said.

“This is your house,” Kudsi said. “We’d like to see some ownership.”

Reach Lauren Pond at [email protected].