After two weeks of fumbling around with spare keys, biology senior Van Bui finally received the ones he lost from Cal State Long Beach’s Lost & Found.
“I kept checking in, and they let me know right away when they had it,” Bui said.
Luckily for Bui, CSULB’s Lost & Found goes out of its way to find owners of the items it receives.
The Lost & Found keeps track of everything that is turned in, and the staff works to locate the real owners of items, whether they’re students or campus visitors. Items turned in have included bicycles, books, clothing, glasses and shower products.
The Student Recreation and Wellness Center is the biggest generator of lost items. It turned in three medium-sized storage bins last Friday.
According to the interim manager for materials management, Michelle Totten, within its seven weeks of operation, the recreation center turned in 218 items. Only 23 items were retrieved, which is less than 10 percent.
“I will go out of my way to find the owner. It’s very rewarding to find people and make them happy, even though we can’t please everyone,” said Gary Corbin, clerk for Lost & Found.
Corbin said that in order to return items to their owners, it would be helpful if more students checked their CSULB e-mail accounts since that is how Lost & Found contacts students when a name is identified on an item.
“We count on the campus community to help us provide this service,” support services director Ellie Christov said. “Whether you have lost or found an item, please contact the Lost & Found office at the receiving warehouse.”
Items left unclaimed after six months are auctioned off to the highest bidder, usually students, at tentative dates near the Social Sciences-Public Administration building. Media sensitive information like cell phones, flash drives and laptops are not sold in order to protect the owners. Unsold items are given to local sectors of charities like the Lions Club International, The Salvation Army and Goodwill Industries International, Inc.
“We’re really a service that would rather have the real owner retrieve their belongings, rather than for us to sell the items,” Corbin said.
Corbin has worked as a staff member at CSULB since 1995. He moved to the Lost & Found office last October and has implemented changes that have had a positive retrieval rate, he said.
According to Corbin, workers charge lost cell phones in order to obtain call students from the device. Corbin said there are plans to send a memo to all campus departments this week that will include a map of Lost & Found holding centers. He also said an online inquiry form will be added to the website.
Temporary holding centers can be found at the University Student Union, the University Bookstore, the Horn Center, the University Library and the Student Recreation and Wellness Center. The Lost & Found main office is located in the property office. It is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“After being transferred from shipping and receiving, I think it’s different,” said Dario Mota, a junior civil engineering major who has worked at the Lost & Found for five months. “It’s a job that’s more involved with people and recognizing objects. Doing your job, you make someone happy.”
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