How RecRe Became Part of Daily Life at Oxford College of Emory

When Oxford College of Emory rolled out RecRe across campus in March 2025, the goal was clear:

Make campus more accessible.
Make operations more efficient.
And give students the ability to stay active and connected even when staff aren’t on campus late at night or over the weekend.

Oxford is a residential campus. Student life doesn’t stop at 5:00 p.m., and neither should access to the tools that support it.

One year later, RecRe is part of the rhythm of campus life.

In the past year:

• Nearly two-thirds of Oxford students rented from RecRe.
• More than half of those students used two or more boxes across campus.

On a campus of fewer than 1,000 students, that level of reach means RecRe is part of the infrastructure of daily life.

A Distributed System That Supports the Whole Campus

They built a network across campus with 9 locations. Each placement was intentional.

The idea was simple: put access where students already live, gather, and move through their day.

Students don’t need to track down a staff member. They don’t need to plan around desk hours. They scan, borrow, and go.

That shift alone makes campus feel more open and more usable.

Supporting Late Nights and Weekends

More than half of RecRe usage at Oxford happens outside traditional business hours.

That matters.

Evenings and weekends are when residence hall lounges are busiest. When spontaneous games start. When students decide to go play tennis. When someone realizes they need a vacuum or cleaning supplies.

RecRe extends access into those moments without adding staff hours.

It allows the campus to stay active, even when offices are closed.

Where Students Found Value

Residence Life

Pool balls, ping pong paddles, board games, vacuums, cleaning supplies, first aid kits.

These are daily-life tools. They keep lounges energized and reduce interruptions at the front desk.

Residence Life gains efficiency. Students gain independence.

Recreation and Outdoor Play

Basketballs, soccer balls, pickleball paddles, tennis rackets.

Placed in Williams Gym and at the tennis courts, RecRe removes friction between deciding to play and actually playing.

Open space turns into active space.

Athletic Training

Recovery tools in Williams Athletic Training allow students to integrate wellness into their weekly routines without complicated check-out processes.

It’s structured access without added complexity.

Student Center and Gaming

Controllers and gaming equipment in the Hot Spot ensure the room stays functional.

Equipment remains accountable. Students don’t lose access because a single piece of gear is missing.

That consistency keeps high-traffic spaces operating the way they’re intended to.

What This Means for Student Affairs Leaders

Oxford’s first year shows what happens when you focus on access and placement.

Students adopted RecRe across departments.
They used it in multiple buildings.
They came back.

That behavior only happens when a system feels intuitive and useful.

Operationally, the campus benefits from:

• Reduced staff interruptions
• Extended hours of access without extended payroll
• Better activation of third spaces
• Increased efficiency across departments

And culturally, students experience a campus that feels available to them.

The Takeaway

Oxford wanted to make campus more accessible and more efficient while encouraging students to stay active, even when staff aren’t present.

In year one, nearly two-thirds of students participated. More than half explored multiple locations.

That’s what it looks like when lending becomes infrastructure.

RecRe didn’t just add equipment.

It helped Oxford keep campus open, usable, and connected around the clock.