Sophomore Commons?

HAVING previously given its attention to student cars and dormitory life, on both of which matters its proposals were put into effect last fall, the Commission on Campus Life in recent months has been studying the College's dining facilities - a subject about which undergraduates everywhere and always are vocal.

In the latest issue of the UndergraduateJournal, the new publication distributed to all students by the College, Prof. Frank G. Ryder, chairman of the Commission, reports on the discussions held and presents the Commission's recommendations for changes in Dartmouth's dining system. Most drastic of the proposals is that members of the sophomore class, beginning with the Class of 1959, be required to eat in Thayer Hall but that they be given the choice of five-day or seven-day contracts. The transferability of sophomore meal tickets is also recommended. Freshmen would continue to eat in Thayer on required seven-day contracts and juniors and seniors could take their meals there on a voluntary basis.

The crux of the eating problem is how to increase and stabilize student patronage at Thayer Hall, so that the physical facilities can be expanded and modernized and the quality of service and meals at economical rates can be improved. Whatever the number of students eating there, overhead and labor costs remain about the same, the Commission points out, so the result of a marked decline in patronage is an increase in cost per meal.

The Commission believes that by requiring both freshmen and sophomores to eat at Thayer Hall - "and quite possibly only under such circumstances" - the College can be certain to improve the eating situation and hold to the lowest possible costs for the student. The proposal did not get a warm reception from the undergraduates, who argued in The Dartmouth that the College ought to go ahead and carry out the necessary improvements and that voluntary student patronage would then follow as a matter of course.

Other considerations also figured in the Commission's recommendation. "By virtue of such an arrangement," Professor Ryder stated, "it would be possible for parents, Trustees, and the men themselves to be sure that at least during the first two critical years, adequate food and a balanced diet are available for all." Another point was that social contact on a wide basis and under congenial circumstances would contribute an intangible but very important value for the residential college.

"Serious thought must be given to the College's future responsibility in the feeding of undergraduates," the Commission also stated. With the prospect of continuing high enrollment and possibly of growth, the College "must not be frustrated by renovation and reconstruction undertaken now with inadequate foresight and on an inadequate scale. Much of Thayer's equipment is over-age. Its traffic flow is poor. The time to correct these shortcomings is clearly the present, but in any present construction we define the possibilities for the future."

Beyond its specific recommendations, the Commission suggests that Thayer Hall experiment with various aspects of "gracious service" as opposed to the metal trays and cafeteria lines now in use. Its suggestions include the use of dishes and possibly table service on weekends or for certain meals or in certain rooms.

The proposals of the Commission on Campus Life are now in the hands of President Dickey and will be discussed at the April meeting of the Board of Trustees.