Maintenance Requests Ignored

(Above, Plotkin's broken window)

Freshman Nicole Plotkin is still stuck in her stuffy dorm room. Plotkin filled out a maintenance request form when she learned that the screen in her window had popped out in the bottom left hand corner. Plotkin filled out the form two weeks ago and still hasn’t received any help.

Other residents have also experienced similar problems. Freshman Amanda Corrigan still has a broken closet three weeks after filling a form.

“I even filled out another maintenance request form because I thought the first one got lost somewhere,” she said.

Freshman Efren Espinoza has filled out many maintenance requests and has always received the help he requested in a few days. His only complaint is, “Those bitches never show up until your napping.”

Plotkin plans to fill out another maintenance request form and to contact her RA about her troubles.

Until then however she will have her window closed. “It brings in spiders,” she says.

UPDATE:
Recently Plotkin's air conditioner vent fell leaving her unable to close her door. Plotkin received help within an hour and had her window fixed as well.

Dining Hall recongnizes Earth Day

The dining hall in recognition to Earth Day has stopped using trays in order the raise awareness on the superfluous waste associate with the trays. Cafeteria trays have been associated with causing greater food waste and use of water in clean up.

However students are agitated about today’s change. “I am already clumsy. This is just asking for me to drop something in front of everyone,” said Amanda Chandra, a freshman.

Other students were surprised how much the change disrupted their normal eating patterns.

“When I got to the dining hall it is usually just to grab something quick to eat right before class. Now when I go in the dining hall I have to make several trips just to put my plates away. Today I was late to

two classes,” said freshman Amanda Swearigen.

“In California, no-tray schools include UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, San Diego State, Loyola Marymount University and all five undergraduate campuses in the Claremont Colleges consortium to which Pomona College belongs,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

Earth day originally started April 22, 1970 and has been used to reflect on the environment and how to keep it healthy.

The dining hall will resume using trays on Friday.

***UPDATE***

The dining hall has enacted a new policy of tray-less Fridays.

Open Mike Night a success

(At the top, open mike night at 9 p.m. Below, open mike night at 10 p.m.)

Despite the furlough day and the windy weather students gathered at the Parkside Dining hall for an open mike night on Wednesday.

Many students came to see their friends perform. However, some students had heard misleading rumors about the food provided."I only came because of the food. I heard there was going to be smoked salmon," said freshman Natalie Pacheco.


Although the night started slow with only about 10-15 people in the audience, more students trickled in within the first hour filling up the dining hall with about 80 students.

In the three hours allotted about 28 performers presented with acts ranging from stand-up comedians to musicians. And despite one comedy act having to be dismissed because of its crude jokes the night went on with success because even non-residents came to to the show.

David Romero a student at a community college in Alhambra attended because his friend Robbie was performing. "The event the RA's put on seem really legit. I'm thinking about transferring here next year."

International House is "heaven" compared to India

(To the left, Sumit Lad in the international house)

Sumit Lad, a graduate student studying electrical engineering has seen his fair share of dorm rooms. After attending the University of Pune in India and visiting his friends’ dorm rooms, Lad is happy he decided to dorm in the U.S

“There is a lot less socializing. I just noticed that whenever I went over there were people cursing and throwing things around. There seemed to be a lot of quarrelling.”

Lad describes the dorms in India in very callous words both in terms of the people and the rules. He says students (all of whom were engineers) were extremely competitive with each other.

“I didn’t have many friends in college in India. It was only until I started living in the international house that I started to make friends in my college career. There a lot of exchange students so they know how to have a good time for a semester before they go back”.

In fact, Lad has changed his roommate every semester within the 2 years he has lived in the international house.

“I’ve met a lot of people living here. I didn’t much of a college experience in India. Now I finally have those crazy college stories.”

Lad will be living in Beverly Plaza apartments due to the cost of the dorms.

New Meal plan offered for fall semester

A new meal plan, the Block Plus Flex Plan will be offered to new and returning residents for the fall semester. The plan consists of 160 meals per semester(which is around 9 meals a week) and $100 flex dollars which would be considered the same as Beach Club dollars and can be used at all locations on and off campus that accept Beach Club.

As of March 31st, of the 1,507 students who have applied for Housing, 518 selected 10 meals, 317 selected Block, 603 selected 19 and 69 haven’t selected yet, according to Carol Roberts-Corb the director of Housing and Residential Life. Roberts-Corb believes the meal plan is ideal for students “that want to eat on campus sometimes or go home frequently. “

The most common meal plan to be selected is the 19 meal plan. Freshman Breanna Pruett who selected the 19 meal plan said, “ The new meal plan is BS. $100 bucks! That will down the drain in a week!”

Other students such as Freshman Kirsten Ratcliff say the plan would be better for students who live closer to home.

“Even though people live at the dorms, at least half of them go away for the weekend. This will be a commuter school no matter what and this plans will work for the kind of residents that live here.”