Students living in the 33 residential communities on Notre Dame’s campus now have new laundry appliances. Over 500 washers and dryers were installed in residence halls over the summer.
The upgrade, carried out by Residential Life, fulfills a promise made by student body president emeritus Dawson Kiser, who announced in an April email to students that he had worked with Residential Life to guarantee that new washing machines would be brought to each dorm come fall.
The new machines are managed by vendor Caldwell & Gregory. The company replaces the previous vendor, WASH Laundry, who had been contracted to manage residence hall laundry at Notre Dame since 2020. WASH Laundry’s contract expired in June 2025.
Director of Residential Life: housing operations, Dan Rohmiller, wrote in a statement to The Observer that a committee of dorm rectors, Residential Life administrators and University procurement staff reviewed requests for proposal (RFP) from a number of companies, and evaluated proposals based on reliability, speed of service, and overall student satisfaction.
“For students, we anticipate there will be fewer service issues than in previous years, more proactive maintenance on the machines and easier ways to submit a work order when there is an issue,” Rohmiller wrote.
In an email to students sent on Aug. 15, Residential Life praised their new vendor. “We were impressed by Caldwell & Gregory’s commitment to proactive maintenance and overall student satisfaction during the proposal process and we look forward to working with them to provide this free service to students.”
The email also stated that a mobile app would be available to students to monitor their laundry loads and receive updates when their cycles were complete. The app has yet to be released.
Daniel Burke, a sophomore in Coyle Community in Zahm Hall, said the old machines were often frustrating.
“The machines are definitely an improvement over last year’s. There were multiple times with the old machines where the washer either didn’t drain or spin, leaving my clothes completely drenched,“ Burke said. “I know many of my friends experienced this too, so it’s nice to have washers that are functioning the right way.”
Burke added that last year multiple washers and dryers were frequently out of order at the same time and noted that last year there was a day where only one washing machine in Zahm Hall was working. He also expressed his anticipation for the new laundry app that has been advertised and shared that he hopes the app is working soon.
“Overall, it’s definitely an improvement and I’m very glad to see it,” Burke said.
Jackie O’Karma, a sophomore resident of Flaherty Hall, also noted the contrast between the old and new machines. She described the new machines as “really nice” and said they work better than the machines that were in her dorm last year.
“They don’t leak water all over the floor and my clothes come out clean in one wash,” she said.
