New sensory room provides students with a place to help reduce anxiety

A new sensory room in the B.D. Owens Library is furnished with soft seating, lighting options, an aroma diffuser and a noise machine to help students reduce anxiety. (Photo by Lilly Cook/Northwest Missouri State University)

Northwest Missouri State University students have a new, calming space to study and get away from any noise that may hinder their academic progress, thanks to the collaboration of multiple areas on campus.

The new sensory room, located in Room 234 of the B.D. Owens Library, is now open to students and may be reserved through the library’s study room reservation system. The room contains soft seating, a variety of lighting options, an aroma diffuser and a noise machine.

Dr. Sara Taylor, an associate professor of professional education, collaborated during the last year with Dr. Stephanie Krauth, Northwest’s assistant vice president of Title IX and Equity, to create the space with support from the B.D. Owens Library and the Office of the Provost.

The sensory room provides another option for students to catch their breath between classes and activities, reduce stress, and be mindful of their overall health and wellness. 

“We have spaces on campus for a wide variety of functions – classrooms, labs, dining, housing, recreation and relaxing,” Krauth said. “Students may find multiple spaces on campus to relax, but some students and some situations require more. A sensory room is provided for all students as a place where they can do more than relax – they can decompress. Utilizing best practices and research regarding visual and audio stimulation, we created a room in the library in collaboration with the School of Education that is intended to minimize stimulation and allow a student to reduce anxiety.”

Devices such as aroma diffusers and a noise machine are available in Northwest's new sensory room to help regulate emotions. (Photo by Lilly Cook/Northwest Missouri State University)

Taylor, who teaches special education courses in the University’s School of Education, sparked the idea after attending a conference where a discussion centered on students’ need for quiet spaces to help them regulate their mental health. When Krauth arrived at the University in 2023, Taylor approached her with the suggestion.

Even as the spring semester began, Taylor noticed students returning to campus with anxiety as they processed course syllabi, new schedules and project timelines. Spending just 15 or 30 minutes in the space and turning down the lights can make an immediate impact on a student’s mental health.

“Sometimes when students are neurodivergent, they need a space to meet certain sensory needs – whether that be sound, light or smell – to help them regulate their own emotions and their own internal systems,” Taylor said. “So we hope that in this space they can use the pieces they need and feel a little bit calmer and more able to regulate their emotions.”

Aside from a fresh coat of paint, the room incorporates furniture and other items – including moon pod chairs and LED lights – that Northwest already had, thus keeping the costs low to install the space.

“We also felt like the silent space in the library was the perfect spot because the outside traffic won’t be as loud,” Taylor said. “We wanted to make sure we had different options because not everybody benefits from a space in the same way.”

The Northwest chapter of the Council for Exceptional Children, which Taylor advises, is gathering feedback from students to determine the benefits of the space and learn about items students might want in it. The student organization hopes to present its findings at the Council’s spring conference, and Northwest may establish similar spaces if demand and reservation numbers are high.

“We’re excited to get feedback from Northwest students,” Taylor said. “It’s one thing to read research and read through different things; college students identify this as something that helps them to be successful, but it’s another for our students at Northwest.”