Mississippi State University will end its free laundry pilot program for residence halls that was in effect during the 2024-2025 academic year, returning to a pay-per-load model beginning in the fall 2025 semester.
Dei Allard, the executive director of Housing and Residence Life, confirmed that the laundry will cost $1.50 per load for both washers and dryers starting in August. The pilot program, which began in August 2024, allowed students to do laundry at no cost, but Allard said the rising utility expenses made the program unsustainable.
“The expenses were far exceeding what was projected,” Allard said. “We knew it was going to rise a little bit, but getting to the point of twice as much for electricity and water usage was too high to sustain.”
Allard said the university consulted peer SEC institutions and worked with its laundry provider, Caldwell & Gregory, to estimate the costs of the free laundry program before implementation.
“We did see students that may have had funding challenges using the services easier,” Allard said. “That’s the one thing I hate to lose.”
While Housing and Residence Life considered hybrid models, such as a capped number of free loads per student for a period of time, they ultimately opted to switch back to the pay-per-load model.
However, beginning this year, students will be able to use their available Dawg Dollars, MSU’s prepaid debit account, for their laundry expenses. With the $300 students are required to have in their account at the beginning of each semester, they can also use it for select vending machines, athletic concession stands, P.O.D. markets, and other dining locations.
The transition back to paid laundry comes as Housing and Residence Life prepares to launch an expanded program for residence hall package delivery. Allard said nine residence halls have received electronic package lockers that will be available this fall, with the potential to expand to the rest of the eight residence halls later.
“[The lockers] were delivered about a month ago,” Allard said. “We’re finishing the training…so it’ll go live in August when students get here.”