Your alarm goes off at 8:30 a.m. That leaves your bleary-eyed self a half hour to throw on some sweats, get your morning caffeine fix at the Campus Center and stumble to your 9 a.m. class.
But you’ll need to get yourself out of bed a little earlier this year.
Last year students had the option of grabbing their morning cup of coffee at the Barone Campus Center Snack Bar (commonly known as the Stag) or the Jazzman’s café in the BCC. This year students only have the Jazzman’s café available to them before 11 a.m.
The result: long lines and time problems for students.
“When I’m already late to class in the morning the long lines really don’t help at all,” said Meagan Nestler, ’05.
The size of the Jazzman’s sitting area is also a concern.
“There’s not enough people working at the Jazzman’s in the mornings and there’s not enough room for everyone to sit,” said Maressa Drake, ’05.
This year the Stag opens at 11 a.m. on weekdays, as compared to 9 a.m. for much of last year. According to Jim Fitzpatrick, assistant vice president of student services, the Stag opens later this year for two reasons: financial concerns and the flow of traffic.
Financially, says Fitzpatrick, opening the Stag two hours later will save the university money, although the exact amount is not available since it is included in the entire of the campus food budget.
Last year the traffic between the hours of 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. was commonly “extremely minimal,” said Fitzpatrick, and that the university felt that the Jazzman’s café alone could accommodate all of these students.
Students tend to disagree.
“I went to the Jazzman’s the other day to get some juice in between classes around 9:15 a.m.,” said Christine Gingras, ’06. “The lines were so crazy that I had to go buy juice in the bookstore instead.”
“I have class straight from 9:30 a.m. until 1:45 p.m.,” said Larissa Cranston, ’06. “I only have fifteen minutes in between classes, and if I waited in line at Jazzman’s I’d be late for my next class. I usually have to run up to the cafeteria and waste a meal to grab breakfast instead.”
Jazzman’s is not accommodating the students as well as was hoped. Fitzpatrick receives a printout of the amount of traffic at the Jazzman’s café, divided into fifteen-minute intervals, and admits that student traffic tends to be extremely heavy before morning classes, specifically at 9:45 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. before the Stag opens. At the peak hours before morning classes students may have to wait on a line of upwards of ten students, and this wait can take up precious time.
One of the specific problems faced by the Jazzman’s café is when a student wants a simple cup of coffee and is forced to wait on the same long line as someone who wants a sandwich made for them.
“Sodexho hasn’t yet come up with a plan for express students (those who just want to buy some coffee and go to class),” said Fitzpatrick. “We are expecting a plan in the next few days to alleviate these problems.”
Some students aren’t only worried about themselves as customers at the café.
“I feel bad for the people who work here,” said Marina Pastorelle, ’05. “They are stuck doing everything for so many people. I think the Stag should open earlier to help them out.”
The hours for the Stag diner and Jazzman’s cafe this year are as follows: the Jazzman’s café is open from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. on weekends. In the Stag, the various stations are open anywhere from 11 a.m. until 2 a.m. depending on the station and day of the week.
Despite student desire for the Stag to open earlier like last year, Fitzpatrick says that there are no plans to change the hours. He would also like to remind students that after Easter break last year the Stag’s hours were changed on weekdays to opening at 10 a.m. instead of 9 a.m.
“We recognize the problem and are awaiting the Sodexho plan to alleviate it,” said Fitzpatrick.
Sodexho could not be reached for comment.
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