The water fountain located in front of the Anderson Student Center has a fancy gadget embedded in it: a sensor that measures wind velocity. This piece of the fountain was not an addition but was included in the donation of the fountain.

Mark Vangsgard, vice president for business affairs and chief financial officer, said the sensor’s function is basic.

“The stronger the wind is blowing, the shorter the fountain becomes,” Vangsgard said.

The fountain’s twin on the Minneapolis campus has the same sensor as well.

However, even a fancy weather function doesn’t impress some students who think the fountain was a waste of space.

“It is an expensive addition of aesthetics that in reality serves no purpose beyond tying the quad together,” senior Scott Carpenter said.

Other students don’t enjoy the design.

“I do like the idea, but they should have made it fancier,” junior Tim Dessonville said.

While students debate the fountain’s design and purpose, Vangsgard is concerned about potential future problems.

“I worry about students putting food color or soap in the fountain or taking a shower sometime after midnight and creating all kinds of new traditions,” Vangsgard said.

But Vangsgard advises against going into the fountain.

“It’s never a good idea to get up on the fountain base; it’s wet, it’s slippery,” Vangsgard said.

Some students, like senior Talon Beck, enjoy the fountain and think it adds something to the lower quad besides grass, trees and sidewalks.

“It compliments the whole newness of the new Anderson Student Center,” Beck said.

Caroline Rode can be reached at rode8318@stthomas.edu.