With the semester speeding to a close and professors assigning exams upon papers upon projects, many students may find it difficult to focus on anything besides school. Chores like cleaning the dorm and doing laundry often fall to the bottom of the to-do list, which can cause even more stress. First-years Kayla Capuzzi, Schuyler Cerow and Dani Estrada have come up with a solution to this problem: a dorm-cleaning service in which students can hire them to tidy up their rooms.

The three developed a small business on Instagram, under the username @dson.cleaning.service. They list making beds, sweeping, vacuuming, laundry, taking out trash, tidying spaces, wiping down surfaces, dusting and reorganizing spaces as their services, but explained that they are open to anything as long as they feel it is within their capabilities. “We always say yes… there’s no harm in trying new things,” said Capuzzi.

For Capuzzi, Cerow and Estrada, the most gratifying part of their business is being able to take some of the burden from fellow students and be a resource for people to turn to. While many people are embarrassed about having a messy room, the cleaning business is a judgement-free zone. “Our rule number one is we don’t judge your rooms … we signed up for this,” Capuzzi said. While they have a set rate for specific services, they also are willing to negotiate prices and generally do not turn anyone down unless they are being asked to do something outside of their comfort zone. 

“We’re doing it because we love it,” said Cerow. She revealed that the business has also had a positive impact on her and the other participating students. Cleaning allows them to relieve stress and take their mind off of things, as well as making a bit of money for gas and groceries. Running this business has allowed them to feel more connected to the Dickinson community as well, and has given them the opportunity to become friends with people they wouldn’t have met otherwise.

The business began at the start of this semester and was initially received with disbelief by students they approached, but has since gained significant traction. Cerow explained that college cleaning businesses are not very common so people did not know how to approach them initially, but they have received nothing but support since people began to take them seriously. 

While there are not many opportunities to expand their business beyond Dickinson, they are committed to serving the Dickinson community as much as they can through this business. “I think we all agree that we’re gonna continue it,” said Estrada.

If you are interested in hiring Capuzzi, Cerow and Estrada to clean your space, please contact @dson.cleaning.service on Instagram.