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Printer-Friendly ModeStudents not voicing opinions enough
September 26, 2005 —
This past week, I was assigned to cover the Dining Services Food Forum, and as I sat at the meeting and scanned through the attending faces, I was disturbed to see that all the usual folks were there. That's not to say that the usual faces are bad, but just that they are habitually the only ones that ever attend. It is uncommon for a student to show up to one of the forums if they don't represent some sort of organization or hold a position where they need to attend. Rarely does Joe Student - or Josephine Student if you please - step through the Multi-purpose Room doors just because they have a question or want to find out what's going on. Because of this, I am disappointed in the student body at SVSU and feel that, by and large, students are passing on opportunities like these to let their voices be heard.
I don't want to come off like a Dining Services puppet. As a reporter, it's my job to remain impartial and avoid taking sides. That doesn't mean, however, that I can't express in my columns that I think they do a good job or that I think they're good people. That also doesn't mean that I don't get frustrated like any other student if my food is cold or if I think the drinking glasses should be just a tad bigger than the shot glasses they currently have available.
For the most part, I can say that we college students care about our food. We like to eat a lot of good food and eat it often and it just pisses us off if a monkey-wrench is ever chucked into that process. Likewise, as a six-year McDonald's veteran, I can attest that the majority of the population is the exact same way. But the difference I keep noticing is that, while McDonald's' customers have no problem voicing their opinions, college students seem to be biting their tongues in regards to the food they are so frequently biting into.
So why is it the case? I could guess that one reason stems from the fact that students seem to think that one voice won't make a difference. As evident by low voting numbers, the majority of our generation has decided that no one will care what we think, so we shouldn't waste our time.
Yet that is not the case in my dealings with Dining Services or any other University department for that matter. I've written a number of articles covering Dining Services changes that were a direct descendant of one person's opinion at a Food Forum. One person allergic to yellow cheese - white cheese is offered. One person thinks the coffee is weak - they scramble to make sure the machines are properly calibrated. The people in charge actually do listen at these things and will answer your questions or see if your suggestions are plausible, feasible and affordable.
They give you free food at the forums too, which is never a bad deal. Each monthly meeting is loaded with something to drink and munch on. Last Tuesday's meeting offered mozzarella cheese sticks, and some little whatchamacallit thingys. I didn't really care for the whatchamacallit thingys, but I took my fair share of cheese sticks.
And students need not be afraid to come just for the free food because, in the end, Dining Services knows that if you're there, you'll more than likely bring something up or express your opinion. That's just how things happen.
It's not just Dining Services that hold these types of forums, either. I often hear students complaining about this or that or talking about an idea they have. Unfortunately, that's where it often ends and they never tell anyone about it. They don't properly utilize the President's open forums or Student Association meetings or any of the other various mediums students have to express their opinions. Maybe they don't know when or where they are, but if they feel obliged to complain, they should probably ask who it is they should complain to.
From my experience, this University does an excellent job of listening to its students - probably the main reason why it's grown and become so popular. I can only imagine how much better it would be if everyone stepped up and let people know their opinions and how they feel about the happenings of this campus. I personally urge anyone who has anything to say, to seek out the proper source and be heard. Just make sure you swallow your cheese stick first.