April 9, 2008

Campus Food and the Discerning Palates of College Students

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/dining/09campus.html

Check out the link, above

This is the link to the future . . . of colleges and universities all across America. If not all colleges and universities, at least those that want to continue to attract aware, curious, skeptical, honest and, in my opinion, high-achieving students. Ten years ago universities started to get the idea that selling out the rights to various corporate entities, be it Barnes and Noble or Pizza Hut, Starbucks or Dreyer's Ice Cream, in order to gain name brand recognition in their new, state-of-the-art student centers-- would be the major selling point to prospective students. Oh yeah, and to earn a quick buck, of course! This has been the fad at most universities as they constantly begin and end capital campaigns to enhance their endowments. But many of these universities will begin to suffer the consequences of their actions as they realize that they have 10-year contracts, for example, with these corporate entities, but students are no longer attracted by the heat lamp pizza-by-the-slice and overall lack of healthy options. This generation of college students, with everything from the Iraq War to the Presidential election, are some of the most active young people that we've seen in this country since the Vietnam era. Though they certainly are also the generation of fast-food, text messaging and cell phone dependence, they are also the generation born to the parents from that Vietnam era- parents who want their kids to experience more, live richer, fuller lives and have more options than ever. Bottom line: colleges now are playing one big game of catch-up. They all want to set a trend in some area or another. When, in 1983 Princeton built a climbing wall, other universities immediately followed suit. Some universities look for anything to set themselves apart: extra-long beds; pool tables in every residence hall; on-campus banks; 24-hour libraries, etc . . . But the strange thing is, no matter how much we know about eating habits and long-term health being linked to nutrition, universities just aren't acting quickly enough to make their options healthier and more diverse. Is not college, for most students, the time when they first begin to learn responsibility in their daily eating habits? So, it is those universities that do not share nutritional values with this young generation which will continue to feel the impact of their own decision to not incorporate healthy options on their enrollment and application numbers. Applications will continue to go down. Enrollment will cease to grow. I find that teenagers today are more aware of themselves than ever. We are graduating high school seniors who have put more thought into their potential career (post-college) than any young men and women before them. Parents are telling their students in their freshman and sophomore years of high school that they need to start thinking about a career-path. I'm not saying that this is right, nor am I saying it's wrong, but I am saying that it's the truth. These students are responsible, healthy-minded and aware. You might not think I'm talking about YOUR student, but remember, teenagers are never AS responsible, healthy-minded and aware as WE want them to be. If they were, they'd be very unique (or our standards would be too low). So, remember, when you're looking into colleges and universities, be aware of the fact that if they can't cater to your needs in the dining hall(s), what makes you think they will challenge you to grow in other arenas of the college experience? Just a thought. Honestly, the article I linked above is just too juicy to read on an empty-stomach. Bon Apetit!