by Katherine Wisen

Let’s face it – the Corum was made to be eaten in.

There are tables for two, and tables for four; short tables near couches and high tables near stools; big wooden tables and a small coffee shop counter top; and now, one glance out the window and you’ll see shiny new picnic tables. So many places to hold conversation, so many tables to hold plates.

So, what’s missing from this picture between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. every day?

Lunchers.

As most of you know, Food Service no longer allows students to take food out of the cafeteria. The decision, although supported by Spiritual Formation and Cornerstone’s president himself, has sparked grumbling and complaining from nearly all meal plan patrons.

Many, like CU junior Kyle Dougherty, think it’s “really dumb” that we can’t bring our food into the Corum.

Others, like freshman Carrie Carr, think it’s “stupid that we have those picnic tables and can’t use them.”

And we, the people of The Herald, can sympathize – because we want the Corum back.

We want to be able to eat cafeteria food somewhere other than at a round table. We want to be able to eat with our commuter friends who brought their own lunches. We don’t want to have to wait in the Grab and Go line for 20 minutes.

However, we also want students to know the real reasons behind Food Service’s decision.

The first reason is that Food Services is trying to get an upper hand on food waste. Cindy Wiltheiss, the director of Food Services, is a part of the Community Sustainability Partnership and said she became convicted about the amount of food that ends up in the trash.

Most of this food waste happens in the Corum, and most of the time it’s from students who bring extra food to their friends.

“I would see students carrying trays with five meals on them and it’s like, I know not all of that is going to be eaten,” Wiltheiss said.

But others feel that this problem has already been solved with another change Food Services has made recently.

“They already took away trays,” senior Jake Erickson said. “People can’t bring food to their friends anymore.”

But Wiltheiss said that, trays or no trays, extra food would still be brought out.

“Students are very creative,” she said. “They would find ways to bring extras to their friends, and then we’re back at food waste.”

And food wasn’t the only thing ending up in the trash.

“We were losing a lot of silverware,” Wiltheiss said. “You would pick up the trash bag and hear the jingling of forks. That was a major problem.”

Wiltheiss also had answers to many of our complaints.

“We encourage people to eat out on the picnic tables, and students can still eat lunch in the Corum,” she said. “You can get your food from the coffeehouse and go eat.”

Wiltheiss said Food Services has bulked up the Grab and Go menu by adding hot sandwiches, and they are currently working on a way to speed up the service.

“Our goal is that no one waits in line for more than five minutes,” she said.

But students still want more options than just Grab and Go’s selection – and Wiltheiss said nothing is set in stone.

“Give us some suggestions,” she said, adding that students give suggestions via e-mail or the ongoing surveys that will be occurring. “There are a lot of good ideas out there, and we want to hear them!”

So, fellow students, work with us to get the Corum back. Send in your suggestions, and hope for the best. But realize – we’re not going to get the Corum back if we’re throwing away food and silverware. If we want privileges, we need to be responsible with them.