The Marketplace to-go containers have been a success; they allow students to eat outside, take their meals back to the dorms and are an overall quick and orderly way to navigate the dining hall—which can often become overcrowded.
“They are very convenient and sustainable. I like that they are reusable. You can take them out, take them with you, eat whenever you need to eat,” sophomore Tim Mackall said.
Like Mackall, the Elizabethtown College community is participating in a cause that protects the ecosystem. Although the to-go box system may only appear to be a small benefit to the environment, it still promotes a nontoxic, anti-pollutant campus.
Along with preserving the environment, the system is time-efficient—especially for busy Blue Jays, such as first-year Isaac Kraenbring.
“[The to-go system] seems like it saves time when you’re going to get food because you’re not carrying around a big bulky tray. You can get food easier, and you just get in and out and skip around the lines a little bit,” Kraenbring said.
Some students prefer to eat in their dorm or study rooms while completing their homework, since it can be difficult to focus in the Marketplace due to the myriad of distractions present. Those who maintain a heavy workload and do not have time for a meal break reap the full benefits of this to-go system: they simultaneously utilize their meal plan and finish their assignments.
On the other hand, some students want to see changes with the to-go containers.
“I wish we had different size options. Sometimes food doesn’t go together. If I want slices of pizza, then I can’t get a main entree because there’s not enough room in them, and we are only limited to three [compartments],” first-year Griffen MacLaren said.
MacLaren posed a solution to this, suggesting that students should be allowed to check out multiple boxes at once, especially those with the unlimited meal plan.
With another idea, first-year Emma Gilbert proposed that the to-go containers could be used “After sitting down at the Marketplace], if you didn’t finish what you were eating, you could just put your [leftover food] in and go. Sometimes when I get something and only eat half of it, I feel really bad because I’m wasting a lot of food because you can’t just get a to-go box.”
Students could store the food in their dorm minifridge, allowing them to take full advantage of the meal plans.
Gilbert also spoke about a problem she faces with the to-go boxes: forgetting them in her room, causing them to pile up throughout the week.
“There should be one return place in each dorm building as well because I forget to take them with me when I go to the Jay’s Nest, but if we had a return place down in the [lobby], I’d remember,” she said.
Overall, Gilbert likes the to-go boxes and said that she enjoys the option to eat outside, but with her tight schedule, having a drop-off station in the residence halls would be very helpful.
“They should have cleaning spaces next to the return station because when I go into the bathroom to clean [the container]… no one likes that, and I don’t like [doing] that,” another student said.
Not only will this serve as a convenience for students, but it will also allow for the bathroom sinks to remain tidy. Washing hands or brushing teeth in a sink with salad stuck in the drain is less than appealing, so this system is also a great way to promote cleanliness.
Overall, the student body likes the to-go boxes and utilizes them regularly. While others, who generally still approve of them, have fresh ideas that they would love to see implemented on campus.
