As college students, we are used to handing over our money left and right for amenities that we consider to be free in our homes. We are consistently paying for things that may go “sight unseen” such as meal plans and health insurance. And some of us may be spending hundreds of dollars on textbooks each semester that have yet to be opened. Because of this, the sight of “free” anything gets us rushing to be the first ones in line to have it.

One of the basic amenities that many students overlook is laundry. Prior to eagle dollars, each machine took $1 worth of quarters per load but after the campus got savvy with the eagle dollar system, each student was forced to pay $2 for every loud of laundry.

Since many students opted out of the $150 flex dollar meal plan, the cost of keeping clothes clean was getting a bit pricey. As of Monday, October 3, the campus has deemed free laundry throughout each building.

“Over the past 10 years, we have evaluated this situation many times,” said Director of Auxiliary Services Matthew Portner. “As many times as students come to school and pay tuition, we wanted to increase services without increasing expenses.”

Although the situation may seem too good to be true, Auxiliary Services and Ashland University have recently signed with a new company, ASI Campus Laundry Solutions. The company is located in Dayton, Ohio and seems to be a key laundry source for many colleges and universities such as Akron, Bowling Green, Cleveland State and Tiffin.

Even though this new change was implemented just recently, students’ reactions are nothing more than positive. The beginning trend to each building was the sight of laundry galore, but, now that it is here to stay, students do not have to worry about missing their opportunity to wash clothes.

“I love the free laundry! It’s so nice not to have to use eagle dollars every time I want to do a load of laundry,” said junior Carly Brown. “It’s also nice to be able to dry my clothes too; if my clothes are still wet after one cycle, instead of having to pay for another load I can just run them through again, for free!”

The new company seems to be a dream come true for Ashland. ASI Campus Laundry Solutions promises weekly preventative maintenance for the washers and dryers, and different information posters and floor programs. One of the most intriguing aspects from the student’s point of view is the company’s different contests. Just last year, the company had a photo contest where the winners received a grand prize of $1,000.

“This is a win-win for us because in the past we were not able to make a deal that would benefit both the students and the institution,” said Portner.

The days of dragging home ten pounds of laundry or having to consistently refill eagle cards is coming to an end for students. Since many students do have a steady income to feed money to the washers and dryers, the possibility of actually saving money is ringing through students’ ears.

“It will definitely help me save money for other things, like sorority dues and spending money on groceries for the senior apartments,” said senior Jen Rotella.

By Christmas 2012, the campus hopes to have all new washers and dryers placed within each building. The first priority for Auxiliary Services will be replacing the washers and dryers in Kilhefner Hall and the Phi Delta Theta fraternity house. Now, when students receive their free t-shirt at sporting events, they’ll actually be able to keep it clean, for free.