Every day, I find myself in the campus dining hall along with hundreds of other college students eating breakfast, lunch or dinner – but there is not always time to have a sit-down meal.  

As a busy college student who is juggling schoolwork and extracurriculars, I often wish to-go boxes were an option that students at the University of Scranton had, specifically in the Fresh Food Company. Many times throughout this school year I found myself rushing to eat my food because I was strict on time or, even worse, I just skipped that meal entirely.

This makes it difficult to make the most of my meal plan and it is an inconvenience. Although we have the first floor as an option for food, sometimes I want a healthier or bigger meal that is up on third or sometimes – I am just tired of the options on first.  

Accessibility is definitely an important factor the dining hall should consider since all college students run on their own time – no students have the same schedule. To-go boxes would not only allow students to bring home leftovers but also bring home those meals that they originally had to rush to eat or just skipped entirely. Implementing these to-go boxes will allow students to eat where they want and when they want, without having to sacrifice nutrition or time.  

There is also the issue of food waste. There is no option to take food to go, many students throw out a good meal simply because they do not have the time to finish them. This is extremely wasteful and ruins the chefs’ hard work. Providing to-go containers would allow students to enjoy the entire meal that they are paying for.  

First-year psychology major Madeline Manning said that she sometimes finds it difficult with her schedule to make it to the dining hall.  

“Sometimes my weeks get pretty busy with tests or homework and I don’t have time to have a sit-down meal. To-go boxes in the dining hall would allow students to get a fresh healthy meal to take back to their dorm or library to continue work rather than getting the same food from DeNaples first floor or POD,” Manning said.  

A busy student's life is already stressful enough. Having to worry about whether they have time to eat a good meal that day should not be an issue. To-go boxes could be the fix to this issue that many college students experience.  

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