By Delaney Crawford//
Students at Hood College have always complained about the food served at the school’s dining hall. In past years, there has been a lot of mumbling from students, but no actions have been taken. However, this year students have complained that it is even worse than years prior because of COVID-19.
“I feel like they aren’t trying as hard because there are less people going each day.” Junior Eleana Zill said.
While it does seem like there is less traffic in the dining hall this year, Director of Dining Services John Bragel said, “The traffic patterns are very close to last year. It may seem less crowded because of the new COVID-19 regulations that have been set in place.
There are less tables inside, longer lines to allow the students to stay 6 feet apart and the students are served everything instead of grabbing it themselves.
“Tuesday and Thursday lunches continue to be the busiest,” Bragel said.
This largely has to do with chicken nugget Thursdays, which Bragel said has always been the most popular item.
While the students do say they enjoy “Chicken nugget Thursday” and some other regular items served at the dining hall, they mostly just want more vegetables and healthy options.
A lot of the time, there aren’t vegetables present and students are demanding more.
“I don’t mind the dining hall, I just wish that there were more healthy options every day.” Colby Painter said.
In response to these allegations Bragel said, “I would say that we provide a variety of menu selections to satisfy the many diverse tastes that everyone has. Providing healthy meals is an important part of that. Every item served has a nutritional card that lists the serving size and key nutritional information such as calories, total fat, sodium and more. Healthy selections and healthy preferences can mean many different things to everyone.”
Bragel also said that communication and feedback from the students is the key to continue developing the dining hall and making it better for everyone to enjoy.
In order to receive more feedback, the dining services team put together a survey for all students and faculty members to take. The survey is said to “better understand your satisfaction with your campus dining program and the changes made due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. By sharing your thoughts, we will gain valuable insight to help improve your overall experience.”
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