Scott Barnes
Staff Writer
Part of being a good student and maintaining a high GPA is living a healthy lifestyle, which includes eating a healthy diet. Many students turn to the cafeteria at Parkland to provide them with at least one meal per day.
In an informal poll conducted by Prospectus staff members, 33 out of 50 students questioned expressed discontentment with Parkland’s cafeteria. Amongst their complaints were high food prices and the lack of healthy food options.
Kristopher Rhoads is a Parkland student majoring in criminal justice. He explained that the food options available serve as a means for students to get through the day, rather than to fulfill the nutritional needs they may have.
“My thoughts are that Parkland pretty much offers snacks, or ‘gap’ food, until you can go get yourself some food,” Rhoads said.
The cafeteria does offer yogurt parfaits, wraps, sub sandwiches and salads as well as full course meals but, for some students, these options are not enough. Another complaint students expressed is the lack of gluten free food options. Some students suffer from gluten intolerance or celiac disease and are unable to consume many of the food options offered at the cafeteria.
Choices like yogurt & granola cups are one of the many options Parkland’s café offers.
Many students are struggling to make ends meet and, and even with financial aid, they cannot afford to spend copious amounts of money on food.
Alex Pryde-Wate is studying law at Parkland. He explained that he is happy with the food the cafeteria serves but not the cost. He described the food as “good quality, but pricey.”
Erin Sheahan is a Parkland student working towards a career in animation. She also expressed concern about the high prices that students have to pay for meals.
“The thing is people go into college knowing that things aren’t going to be cheap, but as a college student, you don’t have loads of money to spend. I think that’s one of the main problems,” Sheahan said.
For many students, eating healthy is not a lifestyle they choose to adopt and they expressed an apathetic view on the food choices available on campus.
For the students who do care about the nutritional value of the food they eat, the cafeteria will be posting nutritional facts starting in the spring semester of 2016.
