Changes in Dining Affect Students

Changes in Dining Services that occurred over the summer are affecting the way that students are getting food, the biggest change being the expansion of the meal plan to Ferris Booth Commons and JJ's Place.

"The big change for dining was that we went from a program that had only one resident dining hall to three. To do that, we converted Ferris Booth Commons and JJ's Place from previous retail a-la-carte-priced restaurants to places where you pay one price at the door and then eat all you care to eat," said Scott Wright, Vice President of Campus Services.

Despite the new options, students have criticized many new aspects of the program, especially the closing of John Jay Dining Hall on weekends.

"As an upperclassman, it's been an adjustment since the dining plan this year has been quite switched up, so there could be more options. It's been a bit of a shift, with both pros and cons. The fact that John Jay is closed on the weekends is horrible, but Ferris Booth does give you more options." said student Philip Pierott.

"Part of the Reason why we made our changes is because in the past, everyone who subscribed to a meal plan had to eat in John Jay between the hours of 10 AM and 1:30 PM or 5 PM and 8 PM. Now, with these changes, Ferris Booth commons opens at 8:30 AM in the morning and JJ's Place closes at 1 AM in the morning. So, now students with meal plans can eat at any time between 8:30 AM and 1 AM," explained Wright.

Still, several students who feel that the changes made were not in their interest have launched complaints.

"We have heard complaints, especially the first weekend, lines were very long at Ferris Booth. We changed a little bit in terms of how we make food, and how we are displaying food, and that's changed dramatically over the past two weeks. Similarly, we have had students say that they would prefer to have John Jay open on Fridays and Saturdays, primarily because they miss the John Jay brunch program. This is something we will take a look at," commented Wright with regard to future changes.

Columbia is Expensive

Columbia is the second most expensive college in the nation, this according to a study released by Forbes on Monday. With an estimated annual cost of over $54,000, Columbia University ranked second in expenses that include tuition, student fees, and room and board. This study comes as no surprise to local students, who understand the costs of living in New York City. The most expensive university in the nation? Sarah Lawrence College, located less than 15 miles north of Manhattan.

Palestinian Studies

Columbia University opened the Center for Palestine Studies on October 7th. The center aims to advance Palestine studies on subjects from politics to the arts, as well as facilitate exchanges with scholars, students and academic institutions in the West Bank and Gaza. The Center's co-director, Professor Rashid Khalidi, admits that to accomplish these goals, the Center will have to overcome its current shortage of funds.

The Organization of Pakistani students held an inter-faith vigil on Monday night. Students and faculty members of all creeds gathered around the sundial in commemoration of the lives lost as a result of the recent flood in Pakistan. The discussion centered around social and political issues surrounding the disaster. After lighting the candles, several community members stood up to encourage students to help the cause. Despite the cold weather and rain, attendees kept their candles lit under umbrellas, showing their unrelenting support for the victims.

Support for sororities

Barnard's administration held a town hall meeting to discuss Greek life recognition and funding from the Student Government Association. Current policies do not provide funding for students who attend Barnard. Students attended the town hall in support of the formal recognition of sororities by the SGA. There were no legislative amendments proposed, but both the attendees and the administration feel that the meeting was productive in raising awareness for the issue. If the policy does not change, Barnard students may be prevented from joining Columbia sororities in the future.

Sports Roundup

In sports this week, Columbia volleyball handed Dartmouth its first Ivy League defeat, winning by the score of 3-1. The women's soccer team also found victory after beating Penn, 2-1. They improve to an impressive record of 7-2-2. And Columbia's field hockey team earned its third straight win after defeating Bucknell earlier today. They weren't the only team to pull off the hat trick, as the Columbia Football Lions won three games in a row for the first time since 1997 after defeating Lafayette on Saturday. CTV News Sports Director Andy Seife brings you the highlights.

Columbia Exacts Revenge

Even mascot relations were testy when the Columbia Lions tried to defeat the Lafayette Leopards (0-4) for the first time in a full decade.

Quarterback Sean Brackett had a career game last time out against Princeton. Could he match that performance on Saturday? On the first drive, Lafayette was in Lion territory when the snap to quarterback Ryan O'Neill went high. The Leopards recovered the ball and got back enough yards to kick a field goal to go up 3-0.

Facing third down on Columbia's first drive, Brackett took to the ground, one of his many carries throughout the day. Later on in the drive, Brackett found Kurt Williams down field for a touchdown.

Lafayette had success running the ball early, and would soon take a 10-7 lead.

Columbia was getting roughed up, hearkening back to past losses against Lafayette, but linebacker Alex Gross had other plans as he returned an interception for a touchdown to give the Lions a 14-10 lead.

The Leopards answered on their very next drive with a 24 yard touchdown pass to go up 17-14. But a 54 yard kick return by Craig Hamilton put Columbia in position to turn the tide for good.

There were few reasons to cheer for the Lafayette faithful in the second half. Brackett and company shut the door, fooling their opponent's secondary and scoring on big pass plays.

Only 20 yards of offense separated the two teams, but Lafayette was undone by costly turnovers.

The away team had one last hurrah, connecting on a 69 yard reverse flea flicker. But time was not on their side, and Columbia picked up their third consecutive win for the first time since 1997.

Columbia Coach Norries Wilson offered his insights after the game: "They're just hungry to play. They're enjoying playing. I think in two months time they're going to look back at it and wish we played a 20 game season."

Sean Brackett added that this win happened as much on the field as it did in the film room: "They're a big blitz team. And when they blitz they kind of encompass teams so I was able to see the blitz, see the whole defense, and when there was a seam I was able to hit it.

Linebacker Alex Gross could very well have seen this victory as a measure of revenge, after getting injured last year in a game against Lafayette.

"People were trying to tell me that all week, 'it's revenge', 'it's personal', but there was nothing dirty on their part in terms of what happened last year. In my mind this was just a team in another colored uniform trying to interrupt what we're trying to do to make this into a great season. It's just about winning the game and beating whoever shows up, it's nothing more than that."

Columbia is Safe Sex

Columbia ranked highest in sexual education among universities throughout the world. The ranking is based on the Sexual Health Report Card released by Trojan Condoms earlier this week, a report that measures universities' efforts to educate students about sexual health. The report grades condom availability, STD testing locations and the availability of sexual health programs. Columbia ranked first in the study of over 140 schools.

Shopkeepers invaded Columbia earlier this week. Vendors from across the city set up their shops in front of Low Library in the annual Kraft Fall Fair. The fair raises money for an agency of Columbia Community Service, the Red Balloon Daycare Center. Vendors from across the city sell items ranging from jewelry and clothing to paintings and plants. Funds from the event will be used to provide scholarships to low-income families.