This week in Reese Hall, residents reported soaring temperatures in their dorm rooms.

Beginning Tuesday, Feb. 10, residents began reaching out to the hall director and residence assistants about the rising temperatures.

“It was actually crazy. At the beginning of the year my room was also really hot for a bit. So my mom sent me a thermometer that I just have on my mirror. And so when I saw it getting hotter and hotter, I was like, OK, this is really weird. And I took a picture when I got to (92 degrees). And then once it did, me and my roommate were pretty much out of the room for a lot of it. We just couldn’t be there cause it was so hot,” freshman resident Gracie said.

These high temperatures have caused rashes and sleeplessness for many residents in Reese Hall. Originally turned on to combat the cold weather during earlier months, the heat reached a boiling point as recent outside temperatures reached 70 degrees.

“Someone asked if we could turn the heat off because it was 70 degrees outside, and they responded that we weren’t allowed to, because of state policy, but never really got a full answer. They never provided us with that policy that we asked for in writing,” Sophia, a freshman, said.

A screen recording of the main GroupMe hub shows that residents asked for the housing policy and it was not provided. A resident told the Beacon that the housing policy was provided later. Instead, RAs advised the girls to wear cold washcloths on their necks and utilize oscillating fans to deal with the heat, according to residents.

“Everyone just kind of started to explode because they were hot, which makes you angrier already, and they were fed up because no one’s giving us an answer, and we shouldn’t have to do cold cloths on our necks and sleep on top of our comforters and ice packs when we’re paying just as much as any other dorm to live here,” Sophia said. 

Residents shared this sentiment, with many sharing that the heat had made them sick.

Built in 1967, Reese Hall’s older heating system controls the entire building, which houses over 600 students. It operates on a steam heating and cooling system, and adjustments take time to take full effect in Reese Hall, according to UT Communications Manager for Media and Internal Relations Lisa Leko.

“The steam system is transitioned on and off each fall and winter. Fluctuating temperatures outside require manual adjustments,” Leko said.

The UT System housing policy states that “During normal occupied hours, the target indoor air temperature shall be 68 degrees Fahrenheit for heating and 76 degrees Fahrenheit for cooling. Facilities Services shall ensure that building spaces are as close to these set points as possible. … Changeover is based on weather predictions. The wide swings in temperature during the fall of the year have made this policy necessary.”

A resident told the Beacon that the building temperature policy was followed.

Consistent messaging in the GroupMe led to Hall Director Jenasia Olinger sending a message on Feb. 10 at 4:30 p.m. that the steam had been turned off, hopefully resolving the issue of the standing heat.

“An email was sent at 1:20 p.m. to the appropriate team. We want to be clear that our role is not to provide ‘PR responses,’ evade questions, or avoid accountability within our scope. We live and work here, too, and we care deeply about keeping this environment safe and comfortable for everyone,” Olinger said.

Upset at the ambiguity, students took to YikYak, an anonymous posting app popular among college students. “If we burn, you burn with us” one post said, referencing the Hunger Games in light of the situation. Shirts and buttons with phrases like “Reese Hall Strong” and “#ReeseWar2026” circulated, drawing more attention to the issue.

The online outrage led to Reese Hall leadership removing all students from the hall’s primary GroupMe, leading to more confusion and miscommunication.

“That night, when they removed everyone, our whole hall GroupMe went down so our laundry, our communal spaces, our events, they took everything off of that system, so now we don’t have any way to communicate with anyone else in the dorm,” Sophia said.

Throughout the week, temperatures in Reese Hall have since cooled down as the steam has been turned off. 

As residents continue to navigate the situation, it’s changed how they interact with dorm leadership.

“I think they’ve lost a lot of our trust and how they handled it, how they responded and how they moved forward, just wiping it instead of addressing the situation. The way they handled it was not fair to us, and not fair to us as people. We’re kids, yes, but we’re also people. We’re students. We pay to live here,” Sophia said.