Home is said to be a place where you feel safe and secure.

To some students living on campus, however, home is full of bugs, mold and trash.

Woodcrest Apartments is home to hundreds of students. With prices starting at $2,257 per semester, some residents complain that they are not getting their money’s worth.

A major concern is the presence of flies in the apartments. The practice of residents leaving trash in the hallways could be a part of the problem.

Others complain that even cleaning their apartment several times a week doesn’t keep the bugs away.

“There are flies everywhere,” said Marchelle Crawford, a junior social work major.

Besides bugs, she said there are other concerns about the apartment, such as squeaky floors and defective power outlets.

“People wonder why Woodcrest is stereotyped as the ghetto,” Crawford said. “Look how we’re living.”

Crawford said she spends a lot of money buying cleaning supplies in order to keep flies and mold in the shower under control, but the flies still seem to tunnel their way back inside.

Director of Residential Life Matthew Brown said the incident is a rare case on the university’s campus.

“We don’t have many bug issues,” Brown said.

He said this is the second incident reported during the four months he has worked in Residential Life.

The first incident occurred this past summer when students complained about bugs in their residences.

“The problem was resolved immediately,” Brown said. “The bugs were found in a common area and we don’t know how they got there.”

According to Brown, other unknown bugs have been spotted in the apartments.

He realizes that the complex is surrounded by a wooded area and said that could be the reason for the bugs.

“[It] could or could not be caused by students who (don’t) clean up or who leaves their window open,” Brown said.

The university has a contract with an exterminator who comes to spray for bugs outside of the residential complexes.

Exterminators go inside the home only upon the resident’s request.

Alexis Fitz, a sophomore business education and finance major, says there is a problem.

“There are drain flies and you can’t get rid of them. There are crickets under the doors,” she said.

Fitz also said that fighting the flying bugs away from her door every night doesn’t help the situation at all.

On the other hand, some students living in Woodcrest say that their apartments are fine.

“Last year a girl had maggots in her shower, however, I don’t have any problems,” said Sunanda Brammer, a sophomore speech communications major.

Roommates Becky Smith and Lindsay Hatfield, both freshmen undeclared majors, said they have never heard of the bug problem.

“Woodcrest should close for a semester,” Crawford suggested. “The apartments need to be redone, repainted, install new carpet and control the mold problem in the bathroom.”

Fitz wants the school to “stop being cheap and fix the plumbing, fix the doors and the screens – it’s the school’s problem.”