Key Takeaways

• O’Connor and High said they reported a suspected source of the flea problem after a roommate brought an unregistered animal into the apartment.
• The pair said they spent about $600 on supplies and an Airbnb after the infestation continued.
• University Communications said Housing responded “swiftly with action,” but O’Connor disputed that response.

Two UCO students say UCO Housing failed to properly address a flea infestation that forced them to vacate their Commons dorm during finals week.

Emily High and Colum O’Connor first noticed fleas becoming a problem in their on-campus apartment in April.

High brought the issue to O’Connor’s attention.

“I kept waking up with more and more bites on my legs,” High said. “It started to get to the point where I couldn’t sleep at night because my legs were itching really bad.”

The infestation affected High’s ability to focus on school.

“I had to leave class at one point because my legs were itching so bad,” High said. 

O’Connor and High didn’t immediately realize fleas were the pests they were dealing with. Initially, they thought it was either ants or bedbugs, but after searching the apartment, they found no proof of either.

O’Connor and High had a third roommate who they said brought an unregistered animal into the apartment. They said they later reported the animal to Housing. The roommate moved out during the semester. They assumed the animal was the cause of the issue, but said other Commons residents have approached them saying they also have dealt with fleas.

UCO’s response

High said she submitted a work request, but UCO Housing’s response failed to resolve the problem.

O’Connor said the maintenance worker sprayed only his room and not the rest of the Commons apartment, and that the infestation worsened afterward.

O’Connor and High shared some of the emails they exchanged with Housing with The Independent View and said they have communicated with Housing over the phone and with on-call RAs about the issue.

After O’Connor and High’s maintenance request was marked as “fulfilled” on April 24, O’Connor sent an email to UCO Housing on April 26 saying bugs were still biting him and High at night.

“I started sending more emails,” O’Connor said. “They kind of ignored it, brushed it off.” 

The pair were told a Terminix team would come Monday, May 11, to address the issue. O’Connor said in an email sent to Housing on May 9 that he and High felt they were expected to live in “a bug-infested dorm” until then.

“We are having to book an Airbnb to leave the dorm because it is genuinely uninhabitable,” O’Connor said in his email. “We have been on top of housing about this issue and yet nothing has changed.”

O’Connor said the stress of dealing with the infestation during finals week, while moving and starting a new job, has taken its toll.

“It’s just been so frustrating and feels like we’re not being listened to,” O’Connor said. “Or like they’re trying to pin it back on us, that it’s a us issue, and it’s just really, really bad.”

O’Connor and High have also spent a significant amount of their own money trying to address the issue. O’Connor said that between buying ant traps, flea spray, a flea vacuum and eventually renting the Airbnb, they have spent around $600 because of the infestation.

O’Connor emailed UCO Housing on May 11 inquiring about possible reimbursement for the Airbnb.

Brittney Platt, assistant director of planning and operations, responded by asking for all communications O’Connor and High sent to UCO Housing, their RA and their housing director regarding the issue.

“I am going to have to look into the timeline of this,” Platt said. Platt also asked O’Connor for the dates when he and High reported their former roommate’s unregistered animal.

When asked why Housing needed those communications, University Communications said it was so Housing could have a full understanding of the communication around the issue. University Communications did not address O’Connor’s questions about financial compensation. 

“We’ll miss our bug-infested dorm”

O’Connor and High decided to poke fun at their situation after noticing an Instagram trend in which people talked about what they were going to miss about their on-campus housing.

“We kind of did something similar and posted on my story, we’re going to miss our bug-infested dorm with pictures of Emily’s bites,” O’Connor said.

The pair started receiving messages from other users describing similar encounters with UCO Housing.

“We ended up having some people who lived in the Commons slide up and be like, actually, we’ve been dealing with this too, and housing wasn’t really doing anything about it,” O’Connor said. “I was like, oh my gosh, so this isn’t just an us thing.” 

The Independent View reached out to UCO Communications and UCO Housing with O’Connor and High’s claims.

University Communications said Housing responded “swiftly with action” to the initial request, which it said was closed within 48 hours of receiving notice. Communications also said a vendor was contacted within 24 hours of the second request, with the vendor’s first available appointment scheduled for Monday. They continued that Housing has been working with O’Connor and High, “including allowing early move-in to their summer housing placement.”

When shown University Communications’ response, O’Connor said it was incorrect.

“We were not allowed early move-in for summer,” O’Connor said. “That’s not something that was ever discussed with us.”