{"id":1828,"date":"2015-03-05T09:00:46","date_gmt":"2015-03-05T14:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/?p=1828"},"modified":"2015-03-05T09:00:46","modified_gmt":"2015-03-05T14:00:46","slug":"centonionhalfbaked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/2015\/03\/05\/centonionhalfbaked\/","title":{"rendered":"CentOnion: Student Life Office Announces the End of \u2018No-Bake Wednesdays\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

BY GRAY WHITSETT – OPINIONS SECTION EDITOR<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

In a stunning decision by the Centre College Student Life Office (SLO), the College administration announced plans to end the beloved \u2018No-Bake Wednesday\u2019 tradition so many students adore.<\/p>\n

The decision was communicated via a campus wide email to the student body last Thursday, stating that while the administration acknowledges the \u201ccultic affinity for the delectable desserts\u201d it unfortunately cannot continue the longstanding practice of \u201cshoveling out pounds of the visually repulsive comestibles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI love them, Elizabeth [Frank] loves them, Dean Hays love them,\u201d Director of Campus Activities Kendrick \u201cLamar\u201d Durham said, \u201cbut it\u2019s not something we can sustain anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"GOOGLE<\/a>
GOOGLE IMAGE FAIR USE
Even though they look like small piles of feces, no-bakes are surprisingly tasty and incredibly popular at Centre College.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Citing rampant damage caused by stampedes of students racing to snatch the treats, in addition to health concerns over the sheer volume of no-bake being consumed per capita on Centre\u2019s campus, the SLO decided to terminate the culinary program.<\/p>\n

Students, however, did not take the news well.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just not sure the reasons given reflect the reality of the situation,\u201d senior Alyssa Watson said. \u201cI mean we\u2019ve all gone a little crazy over the no-bakes before, but I\u2019m not sure the behavior of students is as egregious as the SLO is making it out to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watson, an involved and invested student on campus, has long enjoyed the no-bake tradition of Centre, crediting it with making her college experience more fulfilling. In response to the disingenuous and ill-conceived email announcement by Durham, Watson and other students took a stand, founding the No-Bake Action Group (NAG). Utilizing social media and public space, NAG has drafted a petition, garnering a significant amount of student support in light of the cancellation.<\/p>\n

And while NAG is primarily concerned with the reversal of the decision, there are several concurrent issues they are tackling, including the lack of communication and discussion on the SLO\u2019s part and why no alternatives were proposed before complete elimination.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe value what the SLO does for this campus,\u201d Watson continued, \u201cbut decisions of this nature affect a lot of people. Shooting us an email was shallow at best. It\u2019s like breaking up over text message.\u201d<\/p>\n

In generating awareness, NAG has been successful, but so far their attempts at negotiations have failed, with communications out of the SLO going dark.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes you have to make difficult choices,\u201d Durham said. \u201cNo-Bake Wednesday is one of those choices \u2013 there were just no good options.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed, the damages and vandalism that Durham referenced, but couldn’t actually produce, were startling. No-Bake Wednesdays cost the college a lot of money, in staffing, materials, and liability.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast week,\u201d Durham said, \u201cwe had a girl go into a diabetic coma from attempting to eat a five-gallon bucket full of the batter. It was tragic.\u201d It seems then that while the ritual\u2019s annulment is unfortunate, it was nonetheless warranted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe understand that there are risks involved, both for the College and the students,\u201d Watson said, \u201cbut it doesn\u2019t necessarily follow that the no-bakes should be cancelled.\u201d<\/p>\n

Expressing her frustration, Watson pointed to a fundamental lack of effort on the SLO\u2019s part. \u201cWhen you recognize that something is worth preserving, but it\u2019s having some negative consequences, you look for new ways to do it. And that\u2019s what\u2019s troubling \u2013 this decision indicates to me that the SLO doesn\u2019t recognize No-Bake Wednesday as something worth having, otherwise we would be hearing about possible changes, not unilateral terminations. And where would those alternatives come from? Discussions with the student body. Communication.\u201d<\/p>\n

But an interview with Student Life Coordinator Elizabeth Frank, who works closely with Durham, revealed a different narrative.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to be clear that No-Bake Wednesdays are a privilege, not a right,\u201d Frank said. \u201cAcross the nation, most colleges don\u2019t have No-Bake Wednesdays. Centre students need to realize this. We need to be grateful for what we already have.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no mystery students enrolled at the liberal arts college enjoy many luxuries that a larger college simply cannot support. A short stroll delivers you across campus, an accommodating faculty is prepared to answer questions outside of class, and a buffet style cafeteria meets most nutritional standards.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are an extremely fortunate college community,\u201d Watson affirmed. \u201cNo one is contesting that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Noting the College\u2019s rigorous academic expectations, student investment in the campus, and the less-than-stellar entertainment options in the surrounding community, Watson contextualized the reality of No-Bake Wednesdays.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anyone believes we have some sort of human rights claim to no-bakes. But that\u2019s never been the argument. It\u2019s become part of our culture, something we appreciate and expect. And I don\u2019t think that\u2019s unreasonable \u2013 like the faculty and staff, we work extremely hard to make this experience meaningful. True, suddenly ripping that away didn\u2019t break any rules, but it violates our trust. And in my view, our Student Life <\/em>Office should be our advocates, not our adversaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

As mentioned, communication with the SLO has been limited and many students fear the administration will not budge in its policy. Rumors circulate about NAG\u2019s willingness to go over the SLO\u2019s head and directly to President Roush. For now, this remains speculation.<\/p>\n

The SLO\u2019s actions do raise a number of questions for student-staff dynamics. Will such actions have a prolonged effect on student perceptions of the administration? Is it possible that this will negatively influence giving after graduation? When particular members of the SLO have a certain policy change in mind, how far are they willing to take it?<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately, it\u2019s clear to me that the desserts are appropriately named,\u201d Watson said. \u201cThe SLO\u2019s determination, and Durham\u2019s execution thereafter, weren\u2019t half-baked \u2013 they were no-baked.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s Note: The previous article is from the CentOnion series, a satirical publication focused on parodying various subjects unique to Centre College\u2019s campus.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

As such, all content within this article is purely fictional and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Cento or Centre College.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

In addition all quotations used in this article are purely fictional and do not necessarily reflect the views of the individuals quoted.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BY GRAY WHITSETT – OPINIONS SECTION EDITOR In a stunning decision by the Centre College Student Life Office (SLO), the College administration announced plans to end the beloved \u2018No-Bake Wednesday\u2019 tradition so many students adore. The decision was communicated via a campus wide email to the student body last Thursday, stating that while the administration […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1839,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,5,10],"tags":[16,28],"class_list":["post-1828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-leisure","category-centonion","category-opinions","tag-centonion","tag-senior-week"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1828"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1828\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cento.centre.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}