Connector Editor

Due to unpleasant weekend experiences at University Dining Commons in recent weeks, sophomore Joshua Smolinski decided to start an online petition on Change.org as his first step towards increasing the amount of food choices and hours for students to eat on weekends.

Smolinski said he knew it was time to act on the weekend of Feb. 21.

That night, he hosted his friend, a commuter student, and took him to eat at the dining hall, only to discover minimal meal options to choose from, aside from the daily options of burgers, salad, wraps and cereal.

After browsing the meals on display, the pair had come to find that the cuisine was hardly that. The fish and chips being served “smelled bad” according to Smolinski, and a pasta dish that had been served previous nights that week was the grub for that night as well.

Smolinski recently transferred from UMass Amherst, a university that boasts one of the top dining programs in the nation. Coming from a school with cuisine such as UMass Amherst’s, and possessing cooking experience, Smolinski says he “knows what good food tastes like.”

Freshman Alanna Delaney says she does not feel that the dining hall caters well to vegetarians. “As a vegetarian, especially on East, the [portions are] tiny, nothing close to what you should eat for a meal,” said Delaney.

In addition, the weekend hours of operation, beginning at 10:30 a.m. and ending at 7 p.m., have become a nuisance for many a student this year.

“I believe that as a college student, the times we need to eat are shifted to much later hours due to our classes and studying,” said freshman electrical engineering major Tim Fougere. “Compared to restaurants, a 7 p.m. closing time on weekends is extremely inconvenient.”

On Feb. 21, Smolinski started a petition titled “More food choices on weekends, better weekend hours” aiming to improve weekend dining at University Dining Commons on East Campus. His initial plan was to gain an understanding of how many students within the UMass Lowell community shared the same viewpoints as he did.

Expecting only 50 signatures, Smolinski was surprised to discover that he was backed by 180 names and numerous comments in full support of his ideals by the morning of Feb. 24.

Representing the then 180 students who signed his petition, Smolinski met with East Campus Director Nicky Somma that morning.

According to Smolinski, Somma was open and receptive to the suggestions from the signees and him, but also offered explanations to closing certain stations on weekends.

Somma told Smolinski that certain stations are closed on weekends due to a low student population in the dining hall.

There are about 50 percent fewer students eating in the dining hall through an entire weekend than on any given weekday night, but the weekday lunch population falls almost directly in line with the weekend dinner population.

Suggestions from Smolinski and supporters of the petition included preparing certain meals in advance to reduce wait times, bringing weekday lunch options to weekend dinner times and increasing the overall variety of the cafeteria’s entrée palette.

In response to the hours of operation issue, Somma said the University is planning to keep the dining hall open one hour later each night next year.

Even though Smolinski has met with dining hall managers, he understands that any changes, large or small, may not come soon, or at all.

“I understand the reality of what the university can do,” said Smolinski. “I just have to keep my ideas realistic and within a reasonable capacity for change.”

Smolinski’s petition now has over 250 signatures.

“If things don’t go our way, I’ll have to come up with more reasonable expectations,” Smolinski said. “If nothing happens, at the least, I’m glad I tried.”