The Paws & Recharge room pictured on October 7, 2026, in Houston, Texas. | Karen Wei/The Cougar
The Paws & Recharge room, located in the Technology Commons, is now available for student use.
Founded by members of the Mental Health Advocacy Committee, the space is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and accommodates roughly 10 students.
“As a neurodivergent individual, I know how important it can be to have a third space where students can relax and unwind from the chaos of campus life,” said MHAC public relations manager Kalen Holt. “We wanted Paws & Recharge to be a space where students can step away from the academic environment for a moment and simply decompress.”
The room features several couches and tables in a low-lit, intimate setting.
MHAC finalized the design in the summer and finished setting up the space in October before opening it for students to use.
“Before it was even done, everyone was so excited. Even as we were taking all the stuff out of the boxes, we had a couple students poke their heads in, or I would hear them talking excitedly to their friends,” said MHAC co-president Nyla Pearson. “I remember somebody came in and he was like, ‘is this for us?’ He was so happy to see it.”
In the future, Pearson said she hopes to see Paws & Recharge spaces across campus, especially in support of UH’s commuter student population.
“I’m a resident. I’ve lived here my whole tenure at UH, and there’s never been a doubt in my mind that there’s somebody looking out for me because I have my RAs and I go to the events and things like that,” Pearson said. “But I think as a commuter student, if you just come to school and come home, it’s a little bit harder to feel connected with your campus.”
Pearson sees the Paws & Recharge rooms as an expression of care for her fellow Cougars.
It’s a “labor of love”, in her words, to put a greater emphasis on the mental health of college students.
“It’s really important that we take care of ourselves and take care of the people around us,” Pearson said. “I think a lot of the time, our understanding of health is really one-dimensional. You go to the gym, you eat well, you have a couple of friends, but I think it’s a little bit more three-dimensional than that. By taking care of our minds, we let ourselves take care of other people, too.”
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