It seems like every DePauw student's opinion of the new dining service is about the layout.
But is this really what matters? Are we really that concerned with the fact we can only get in one door on the backside of the Hub? We should not be. We need to grow up a bit and think about all the benefits of Bon Appétit and overlook the reduction on door handles.
Living in the consumerist society we do, we have become accustomed to immediate gratification and bought into the myth that cheaper is better (regardless of how that cheaper was attained). Our new food service provider compromised the door handles for locally produced foods, which is a huge improvement.
If you do not believe me about the quality of locally grown food, give a farmers' market a shot. I fell in love with them this summer while working manual labor. Most of my co-workers were big fans of fried and fast food, and at the beginning of the summer, I followed in their dietary footsteps. By mid-June I felt awful and decided to start eating healthier with an emphasis on green vegetables. Some of my co-workers were a little skeptical, even calling me a 'girlie-boy' on one occasion when I ate Cajun Tofu stir fry with them at McDonalds. Regardless, I stuck with the diet and felt better almost immediately. Without stocking up at the weekly farmers market in downtown Zionsville, I would've been a mess by the end of the summer.
Outside of my personal advocacy of healthier, locally grown foods, dieticians agree that locally grown foods are not only better for you, but generally contain more flavor. This rests on the fact that produce shipped nationwide must be harvested before it is fully ripened, depriving the plant of the time needed to fully mature. Bon Appétit is actually doing a great service to our student body by taking the extra steps to secure a much greater percentage of locally grown foods compared to their predecessor, Sodexo.
Even if you still contend that the Hub's new setup is not suitable for the community atmosphere here at DePauw, I'd argue that you are probably over-exaggerating your commitment to the status quo. Looking back on the old setup, how often did we actually utilize it? My experience leads me to believe we were pretty bad at using it. As a first-year, I primarily used it as a hangover meeting place where I'd try to connect the dots from a fun night. If you were one of the few that properly employed the space, cheers to you. But for the rest of the disgruntled student body, stop making the new setup into a bigger deal than it really is.
I am willing to sacrifice a bit of convenience if it means that I will be provided with fresher, healthier eating options. We can adapt other spaces on campus to be a meeting area for friends. We need to remember what its real purpose is, a place to eat. It might be selfish, but considering the price we pay for meal plans at DePauw, I'd like some fresh produce.
- Small is a senior political science and history double major from Zionsville, Ind.