Connector Editor

South Campus is currently undergoing a major change in dining with the up and coming McGauvran Student Center.

With this addition, there will be a new all-you-care-to-eat dining facility on the first floor, and Subway, Freshii, a bakery, café and a grab-and-go market on the second. On the third floor, there will be seven new classrooms and seminar areas, which are essential to provide enough space for our growing student body.

As if that is not enough, there will be a faculty and staff lounge and learning commons accompanied by a fireplace. In the winter months especially, students will be able to walk from the library to McGauvran in the heated, enclosed walkway. South Campus will finally see these completed renovations just in time for the spring semester.

Mill City Restaurant will be turned into green space extending from O’Leary Library to Coburn Hall. Removing Mill City and upgrading to McGauvran will give South Campus goers more of a variety to choose from for meals.

“Because I’m usually in a rush, I never have time to wait for the healthier options to be made and always just go to the section that had the French fries,” sophomore Michaela Goss said.

With these new dining locations, will it be easier for our students to access their daily nutritional needs, even in a rush? McGauvran is about to make some huge changes on South Campus and having more healthful foods readily available is one of them.

“I think the dining hall has enough for what students need,” says Clinical Laboratory and Nutritional Sciences Professor Mary Kate Keyes. “I am not sure that they [students] are educated enough or know enough to find those options.”

Many students may not know what daily requirements they need, but there are resources available for them to find those needs out. MyPlate and MyFitnessPal are two interactive tools that can educate students on their personal dietary requirements. Like Prof. Keyes said, the dining hall does have enough for students’ needs, but that does not mean they are accessing them; these tools may help.

Keyes said that it is important for students to get “their recommendations of five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day…but they don’t sometimes know where to look or they fill up on stuff that’s not that healthy. Or they choose to have pizza which is always available, instead of go to the salad bar for example, or doing a little bit of both.”

Adding Freshii – a Canadian chain featuring wraps, burritos, salads and smoothies – and new dining hall stations may solve those problems. On the first floor, there will be a “Full Plate” for home-cooked meals; “Broadway Deli” for sandwiches; salads at “Wilder Farms;” gluten free options at “Choices;” and a late-night takeout grill.

“I think having a Freshii will, I hope, mean that people are eating more veggies,” Keyes said. This could be true, and by eating here students can knock out two to three of their vegetable servings for the day.

“As far as the dining facilities, I imagine the standard will go up a little bit because they’ll have new ovens, new refrigeration, [and] brand new stuff… that will hopefully translate into a better quality meal. But you’ll still have the same staff working there, so it kind of depends on their training,” said Keyes.

For students to be more aware of what they should be eating, UMass Lowell Dining has a website and an app to develop healthy food options. Not many students know about or use these tools; Keyes believes that with promotion, students will take advantage of them to keep track of their nutritional needs.

Advertising and signage is always an option to make sure students are aware of healthful options, but audience is a big factor in whether or not they will pick up on these hints.

“If you had a sign next to the salad bar that said ‘don’t forget to fill up on veggies’ I don’t know that the audience, the college student, would be susceptible to that messaging,” said Keyes.

A newer trend our dining has experienced over the last few years is an increase in needs for gluten-free food. The new facility will have a more developed, dedicated gluten-free section for students who have these dietary restrictions.

Keyes has talked to dining hall employees about this trend and found out that sometimes, parents get involved. It is very important that students with restrictions, no matter what they may be, have food that is accessible and can provide them with their daily requirements.

As a university, there are multiple areas where students can find something to eat, but there is always room for improvement.

“Subway isn’t like spectacular quality food, but I’d rather see a kid eat a turkey sub for lunch than nothing,” Keyes said.