Students eat snack at Frank Dining Hall. The late night dining hall service has been the subject of controversy after it was moved to South Campus once a week.

Students Debate as Snack Moves South
By Ashley Langsdorf
Staff Writer

In the last two weeks, neither peace marches nor student rights that have inflamed the campus, but rather the location of Pomona’s 10:30pm Snack.

“The war in Iraq was a relatively minor event at Pomona compared with the Snack issue,” said Dean of Students Ann Quinley.

Sunday through Thursday nights students take a break from studying and down chili dogs, nachos, pizza, doughnuts, and other tasty goodies.

Instituted five years ago, Snack has previously been held at Frary Dining Hall on North Campus. However, last year it was moved to Frank Dining Hall on South Campus while the Frary kitchen was renovated. To appease students living on North Campus, Snack was held in the temporary Greenhouse Dining Hall once a week last year.

This year, with Frary open to students again, Snack has been returned to its original home.

However, many students running for ASPC Senate positions this fall suggested that Snack be moved south at least one night a week. After Galen Benshoof ’06, Chris Thompson ’06, and Buster Zalkind ’07 were elected to South Campus Representative, Sophomore Class President, and Freshmen Class President, respectively, they approached Quinley about the possibility of moving Snack.

“It wasn’t very hard,” said Thompson. “We pretty much asked if we could and she said, ‘What day?’”

Quinley admits that she had previously planned on having Snack one day at Frank this year.

“I expected this to happen,” she said. “Last year it was always held down south, but was at the Greenhouse once a week. It seems fair now that it’s back at Frary to have it once a week at Frank.”

When the change in Snack was announced, it quickly created uproar on North Campus. Neither Quinley nor the Senators who approached her anticipated such a volatile reaction.

“I thought people would see it coming. Everyone in the elections said they’d bring Snack back,” said Thompson.

Adam Gardner ’04, North Campus Representative, admits that he expected the Snack change to cause such a response. “I had an idea because my initial reaction was, ‘Wow, why is this happening and why didn’t we know about it? I did expect that it would become a large issue because when people circumvent the process and people don’t really understand what’s going on, there’s going to be a strong reaction,” he said.

For the majority of the past week and a half, Snack has been discussed, argued, and petitioned by a number of students. Benshoof, Thompson, and Zalkind have received their share of negative and positive feedback, from scathing letters to the editor and an editorial in The Student Life, to congratulations and praise from students living on South Campus.

Most South Campus students wanted Snack to remain one day at Frank because of last year’s arrangements, while North Campus students cited seniority and tradition as reasons for why Snack should always be held at Frary, according to Quinley. “I agree with people who say it’s a Senior prerogative, but this compromise seems fair to both parties,” Quinley said.

Zalkind asserts that the Snack issue escalated because of more than simply student opinion. “If not for a few people, it would not have been such a big deal,” he said.

ASPC President Ari Greenberg ’04 agreed, naming other factors that helped enlarge the problem.Accordingto Greenberg, one major factor was the dispersal of misinformation by The Student Life.

“The coverage that The Student Life gave to the Snack issue was not impartial. I don’t mind the newspaper providing coverage, but I do mind the newspaper using false information to stir student emotions. TSL has the responsibility to inform students with correct information; in some respects, they failed in that responsibility. They failed to maintain objectivity,” said Greenberg.

The Student Life Editor-in-Chief Joshua Tremblay contests these allegations, and refutes this in his weekly “Letter from the Editor.”

According to Benshoof, one key piece of misformation was the notion that Dining Hall Services and Snack location are decided by the Senate. “Dean Quinley runs the dining halls. It’s her final decision as to how Snack is done, not the student government’s decision,” said Benshoof.

Quinley also points out that moving Snack does not negatively affect dining hall workers. “It hasn’t cut any worker hours,” she said. “The workers are not a factor in this.”

Last Tuesday, the Senate reached a consensus on the Snack issue. “We passed a resolution that says that we recommend to Dean Quinley that snack be at Frank every Thursday. At the end of the semester, we’ll reevaluate it and see if it should remain there,” said Thompson.

Gardner emphasized the fact that Benshoof, South Campus Representative, made the initial motion, while he, North Campus Representative, seconded it.

“The main thing that’s important is that I think that the decision we came to as a Senate was a great idea. It showed the willingness of the people who backed the move to Snack to negotiate, and the willingness of the people who wanted snack in Frary to negotiate. We made the decision together,” said Gardner.

The outcome was supported by many, including Greenberg. “I have great faith in my Senators and they didn’t let me down. I strongly support their decision,” he said.

However, Greenberg and Gardner point out that this issue is not a closed one. “I think it’s still on people’s minds. People are going to be very vocal about it when we discuss it after the semester ends,” said Gardner.

Ultimately, the goal of Snack should not change, observes Quinley. “Whether it’s Frary or Frank, I just want everyone in one place. The point is for everyone to get together and see each other,” she said. “It should bring people together, not divide them.”