Most students who have walked through the quad between classes have noticed the blue outdoor water fountain that sits beside the Campus Center building.

The mystery of the fountain is that when students go to fill their water bottle or get a drink, water doesn’t come out from any of the spouts.

“The water fountain was part of the overall quad design a couple years ago,” said Associate Vice President of Facilities Management Bill Rasnick. “The location was based on the pedestrian flow and the proximity to a waterline.”

The location of the fountain is meant to be practical for students who are outdoors and on the go, but some students are hesitant to use an outdoor fountain due to cleanliness, but Rasnick assured that this isn’t something students should be concerned about.

“Outdoor fountains are fairly common, and there are no health hazards that I am aware of,” Rasnick said.

Rasnick said that he checked the fountain over the summer and it worked for him, but not many students have reported trying to use it or successfully using it since it was placed in the quad.

“The drinking fountain is a freeze proof model that you should only have to hold the button down for several seconds to get the water to flow,” Rasnick said. “We have discussed disabling the freeze proof element so the water flow is faster, so maybe that is needed in order for it to work better for students.”