The concrete walls were repainted, sofas were purchased and the number of tables increased considerably. Long abandoned, the small bar has been restored and offers drinks and a few sweets at low prices. Forty cents for a coffee, 60 for a soda or fruit juice, a little over a euro for a famous cookie from rue Vasselot.
Nestled on the first floor of the Ereve building, the new associative bar of the University of Rennes 2 fills a void. On the Villejean campus, which nevertheless accommodates more than 20,000 students, no cafeteria is open to students. There are those at the Crous, but they are a little out of the way and close their doors at 4 p.m.
Since the end of September, the Faculty of Human Sciences has had its own associative bar, installed in place of a “little valued and little used” home. “People come by here to make a little cut. They sit down, they have cheap coffee, they discuss, they meet again. It was necessary, especially after the two years we have lived, ”explains Johanna Courtel, who is celebrating her last day as student vice-president at Rennes 2.
An electoral promise from the Pirate Union
It was his union, the Union Pirate, which had submitted this project as part of the university’s first participatory budget in 2018. Coming at the top of the votes, the associative bar project fell behind due to the Covid-19 but it seems already well adopted.
“We see a lot of people pass by, it’s super friendly and the prices are united”, assures Marine, registered in 3rd year of psychology and who acts as a volunteer at the bar. At his side, Anaïs holds the same speech. “I sometimes come to get myself a cookie between two lessons, I can rest for five minutes. It’s important, because there aren’t a lot of places to sit outside of class, ”continues this first year film student.
Just like the investments made by companies that want to pamper their employees during their break time, the University of Rennes 2 has seen requests for accommodations pour in since the implementation of its participatory budget. “When you walk around the campus, you see that a lot of little things have changed here and there. At first, sometimes it’s just an idea. But this participatory budget is proof that students can do things, ”says Fabien Caillé, also elected to the Union Pirate. In addition to the associative bar, the university has set up a nap room at the university library, loans of outdoor games or even distributors of free periodical protection. But also outdoor furniture around the BU, which is stormed as soon as the weather permits.
“It often responds to expectations rather than needs”
Subject to student votes, these projects allow detractors of Rennes 2 to have a blast. But they seem to have convinced, including within the management of the establishment. “It often responds to expectations rather than needs. But this is not a simple Christmas list. Certain projects answer real questions of precariousness or political commitment in favor of the environment ”, estimates the new president Christine Rivalan-Guégo.
Used to being seen as a free-time university, Rennes 2 students are keenly supportive of the usefulness of their ideas. “Our ambition is not to be first in the Shanghai ranking. We don’t care. On the other hand, we want people who come to Rennes 2 to live well, to want to come to university, to study. This is not at all incompatible with academic success, quite the contrary, ”asserts Johanna Martel. The first bosses to install consoles, table footballs or ping-pong tables in their business have always touted better productivity. Renowned far from the professional world, the university seems to be inspired by it.