Food matters

If you attended last weekend’s Leadership Reconnect, you might have a good idea of what this week’s topic is based on the title.

I personally could not make it, but from what I heard it was one I should have been at. Not only were new policy changes regarding snacks and catering for clubs announced, but students were frustrated and vocal about it.

Anyone who has been at Stevens for more than a year knows that the catering policies have been steadily getting more restrictive. Last semester, the policy was changed so that clubs could not spend over $50 on snacks or prepared foods in a single purchase not through CompassOne, the catering company exclusively contracted by Stevens. A year ago, it was made $100, and before that it was $250. Now it is $0 — all snacks and prepared food must go through catering.

The exceptions to this rule are “authentic kosher items, certified vegan desserts, [foods for] special allergen or dietary restrictions, and culturally complex dishes from specialty markets,” because catering doesn’t have vendors for those items. For these instances, students have to acquire a signed waiver 4 to 5 days prior to the event to purchase the foods.

My organization does not buy food, so I am not as affected by these changes. But for clubs whose whole focus is spreading culture through food, these presidents are so justified in their anger! If the purpose of student organizations is to allow students to engage in a community and foster leadership skills, then why are students being forced to run in circles just to have an event? They’re not learning anything besides how to function in a bureaucratic work structure.

I don’t want to think about it from your perspective. You should be thinking about it from ours if you “work to serve [us].” At least you get paid to work here. You are severely underestimating how overwhelming it is just to run a single club. All of us club presidents are perpetually pulling our hair out, sacrificing our GPAs and sleep just so the communities that make us happy can continue to exist at Stevens. Now you’re telling us that P-Cards are now a privilege, and it will take more unnecessary emails and forms to get what I need accomplished? Do you expect this to increase student engagement?

It gets worse — the most thoughtless statement I heard in the voice recording was, “Student engagement is low because not a lot of thought goes into how we think about student engagement.” This offends me because student leaders put so much effort into making their clubs and events successful, both in the present and beyond their time at Stevens. I would even argue that events by students are better quality and better marketed than those run by admins. Definitely better attended.

Food is most definitely not a waste. Food matters so, so much. When I first heard about The Stute it was from an advertisement that said “Free Food!” on Facebook, and it motivated me to give the club a chance. Now I am the president, and I know many friends who run other clubs who share the same story. You say that people take food and run, but just as many people take food and stay.

Food makes a difference. It is the primary motivator to do anything in the mind of college students on a budget. Food is culture and creates a community. Why else do top companies like Google and Facebook have free meals and snacks for their employees? It makes a high-stress work environment pleasant and bearable. People are not mad about the extra five cents it will cost, people are mad about the increased restrictions being put on them and bureaucracy they are being forced to deal with when all they want to do is let their club keep doing the same things that they have always been doing.