Spotlight Department – Residence Hall Association
By: Jared Payton, Housing & Residence Life
On campus, the Residence Hall Association holds weekly advocacy meetings with staff from both Housing & Residence Life and Sodexo, the food services company on campus. Residence Halls are separated into eight separate ‘Blocks’, and representatives from each attend weekly meetings to discuss student concerns and requests, and report on block-specific issues that have come up in the previous two weeks.
Recently, the Advocacy Committee met with Lance Mailem, the Director of Operations for Resident Dining and Catering for Gonzaga’s branch of the Sodexo Corporation. Lance hopes to hold special events in the COG Dining Center, such as a Banquet-Style dinner, Around-the-World fare, or a Harry Potter night. In addition to COG events and Hours of Operation, Advocacy Committee discussed other pressing issues related to food service on campus, namely diversity of food in the COG and the disposal of bagels by the Einstein’s franchise in the Hemmingson Center. Lance was very receptive to student feedback and is currently in the process of expanding the salad bar and noodle diversity at the 360 Grill, and widening the selection of ice cream flavors at dinnertime.
In addition to meeting with Lance, the Committee meets with Stuart Davis, the Associate Director of Housing and Residence Life. One item of particular interest to both the Student Body and the Housing Office is the possibility of two-ply bathroom tissue. After some research, on behalf of Stuart Davis, Gonzaga’s purchasing department has recently reported back that an extra ply would not be economical and that the Residence Hall Association (RHA) would have to pick up the slack.
In addition to the quest for an extra ply, Advocacy has met with Stuart on issues such as ice machines, bicycle lockers, and hand dryers. Stuart was excited by the prospect of a source of ice on campus and directed the Committee to look to Sodexo for that service. The Housing office is currently working in parallel with RHA and the Gonzaga Student Body Association (GSBA) to optimize the positioning of bicycle racks and lockers throughout campus. Stuart himself is overseeing a survey of bike locker usage on campus. Finally, hand dryers were ultimately ruled out, due to noise concerns.
The Advocacy Committee will continue to meet weekly until the end of the academic year. Hopefully it will serve as a link between the administration and the on-campus residents to serve as a conduit for positive change within the Gonzaga community. If you would like to submit a question, comment, or concern to be discussed with Housing or Sodexo, please feel free to e-mail the Advocacy Committee at gustudentadvocate@gmail.com.