Emerson Pieper, staff writer
For many college students, finding time to eat can be a big struggle to fit into an already full schedule. Between classes, studying, jobs, extracurriculars and simply trying to have a life outside of school, getting a meal is not always as easy as it sounds. That is why it is so frustrating to see the dining options on campus closing at 2 p.m. instead of their expected 7-8 p.m. closing time. If you are someone like me who has to have a reminder to eat because of how busy you are, then you can most likely understand my frustration and have the same issues with the recent, unannounced schedule change.
A student with afternoon classes could leave class expecting to grab dinner or coffee from either Nabo or Einstein’s only to get there and discover that the options available to them have already been closed. Not every student has food swipes to use either, which makes having other affordable dining options on campus even more important.
Augsburg student Klaus Solko has described the problem well: “As a busy college student, sometimes the mere task of getting a meal can be a struggle. This struggle has only been exacerbated by dining options on campus closing early. While I understand it is an uncontrollable issue, they could at least update the website with the new hours.” If hours have changed, students should not have to find out by showing up at a closed storefront. Campus websites and other dining information should be updated as soon as possible. Accurate information is the bare minimum when students are planning their days around where and when they can eat. Even if the early closures are temporary, students deserve to know what to expect before they make the trip across campus.
“As a busy college student, sometimes the mere task of getting a meal can be a struggle. This struggle has only been exacerbated by dining options on campus closing early. While I understand it is an uncontrollable issue, they could at least update the website with the new hours.”
Klaus Solko
If there are not enough workers to operate until their expected closing time, then the solution should be finding more people to fill those shifts, not stretching the existing staff thin. I do want to stress that the workers should not be expected to take on extra hours simply because the campus is struggling to keep its dining options open. Staffing can be difficult, and hiring more employees may take time, but that does not mean the problem should be ignored. Investing in more workers would help support the current employees while also making it possible for students to have access to food later in the day. It would be a benefit to both the people working in the dining locations and the students who depend on them.
Campus dining is more than a convenience. For many students, especially those who spend most of their day on campus, it is an important part of having access to food during a busy schedule. Students should not have to reorganize their entire day around an unexpected 2 p.m. closing time if there is no change to the website. If a dining option is supposed to be open until 8 p.m., students should be able to reasonably expect that it will be open until 8 p.m.
A campus that knows students spend much of their day here, especially commuters with three hour night classes and those who live on campus, should also make sure that students can eat here. Six hours is a long time to lose from the original schedule. By investing in more employees and keeping dining information up to date, Augsburg can help make campus dining more accessible and reliable for everyone.