The final clubs and frat houses are also set apart from on-campus suites and event halls by decor. The walls of the Belltower and Ten-man are generally blank, the futons mismatched, and the floors are worn down. The conditions of the suites are not due to any negligence or oversight on the part of their residents, but simply because the rooms have endured years of heavy use, and decoration is not usually a significant part of a college student’s priorities (or budget).

Some of the frat houses have matching furniture sets and art on the walls, and if the hardwood floors are worn down in some places, others are covered with carpets. Some final clubs’ walls are actually paneled or hidden by shelves of leather-bound books. Wall space is occupied by plaques and, yes, the occasional taxidermied animal. In short, those houses feel truly lived-in, which potentially makes socializing feel more personal and intimate. And if any partygoer wants to sneak away (perhaps with company), fraternities offer more closed-off spaces to do so.

But typical criticisms of the final clubs do not stem from their design; the same exclusivity that attracts partygoers poses a problem for students who cannot get in. The discontent with these spaces—evident in multiple social space campaigns and a 2009 attempt by the UC Social Space Task Force to raise funds to purchase a space in the Square—made the renovations to the SOCH so urgent in the first place. It is sobering to compare the enhancements such as disco lights and subwoofers with the factors that make more popular party spots a success. However, the SOCH seems to be having some  success; the SOCH’s number of room reservations and bookings have increased by 35%. Perhaps, the renovations will have a lasting effect on this uptick in popularity.

SOCH MORNING AFTER

We had places to party on campus long before the SOCH was renovated. What we didn’t really have were many places to meet with friends the morning after to regale them with stories of bad decisions or unexpected turnouts from the night before.

“We wanted to make [the SOCH] a kind of space we don’t currently have on campus; a flexible social space,” Bicknell says. Indeed, we do currently have plenty of party space on campus, be it a student suite, a Greek house, a final club, or a student group building. The SOCH doesn’t need to be a party space, because it so clearly has other benefits; the lounge could resemble anything from a cushy café to a welcoming study area to an extended and updated living room.

It is hard to envision the SOCH hosting a large number of wild parties, but that does not undermine its other benefits. It could have a unique place in the fabric of undergraduate lives. And a lack of revelry will at least keep the walls cleaner.

—Natalie T. Chang can be reached at nataliechang@college.harvard.edu.