Spot remains closed; cash refunded
Campus Times
March 26, 1999
The re-opening of the Spot has once again been delayed, due to further
hold-ups with subcontractors. But this time, in order to decrease student
complaints Dr. Loretta Rahmani, dean of students affairs, said students
with meal plans will be refunded with their bonus dollars in cash.
What will happen to students who possess meal cards yet do not have
the time or the chance to eat at Davenport due to schedule conflicts? What
are they going to do?
Believe it or not, but classes are scheduled in the 11:30 a.m. to 1:30
p.m. time frame in which Davenport is open for lunch, as well as during
the 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. time frame for dinner. This is not an unusal occurrence.
What do these students do when they can make neither lunch nor dinner?
College students are poor and cannot afford to shell out the extra out-of-pocket
expense to eat out when in fact they have unused meals being wasted.
If a student has a 12-meal plan there is a refund of $75, for 14 meals
it is $50 and for 19 meals it is $25. The amount is so minimal it is not
even worth going over to Woody Hall on April 5 to pick up the refund check
because it just does not stretch.
Also is the refund enough to fill the stomach of a starving student
for the remainder of the semester especially a student sans transportation?
Between Circle K and Warehouse, the refund will be enough for a pizza and
tap water.
Then there are students who will take the refund and spend it on bills
or other non-food related items and still go hungry. They cannot be held
responsible for their spending habits and that is the reason why they have
meal cards so they do not have to worry about paying for meals each and
every time they eat.
One thing is for certain, if the Spot is not going to be available then
maybe the administration should consider giving students general education
credit for Fitness for Life and psychology. Students are starving -- hence,
losing weight -- and they are having to deal with the fury of their peers
over the inconveniences that the lack of food creates causing undue stress.
With the rate of starvation and psychological trauma students face,
they will soon become anorexic crazy people. Look out, United States Postal
Service -- here we come!
It also seems that the University has forgotten about the bonus dollars
students had on their meal cards last semester that were to be used during
interterm. But students were not told that if they wanted to use their cash
card during interterm they would have to do it at an imaginary Spot.
The University also seems to have forgotten about the money that many
students have left over from last semester. It is funny how things just
get shoved under the rug.
While it is easy to say we are exaggerating the seriousness of the Spot,
taking a closer look will reveal that there is a grand reason for the concern.
Not only is it a hassle to eat off campus or try to accommodate Davenport
hours, it is also often impossible for many students. Many do not have the
extra money to do that and while Davenport offers meals to go they are also
a hassle.
In order to have a to-go meal, the student must call one hour in advance.
How dandy. What about students that are in class all day and do not get
the opportunity to call ahead, often they will get away with a box, but
usually they have to deal with many Davenport workers who are not always
helpful.
Why is it so hard to make Davenport flexible? It really can be done.
When Davenport was under construction it was moved to the Spot for a number
of weeks. Could this not be done with the Spot? Could we not utilize the
mobile cart that once was the coffee bar and sell packaged, uncooked items?
There is plenty of room in the Student Center. Students could still use
their cash cards there and although it is not the Spot, we all know and
love, it is another on-campus dining option.
As the semester drags on and the Spot is more and more beginning to
look like the Nightmare on Elm Street, the ULV community is being neglected.
It is time to make some changes to accommodate this small community of students
and staff.
