Michelle Hennessy – News Writer
The line stretched down the hall on the third floor of the Student Center as students waited to get tasters from their favorite restaurants, as ProConn hosted A Taste of New Haven in the Ballroom last week.
“We have new ideas every year, we try new things all the time,” said Alex Kokkoros, senior programmer at ProConn. “A couple of our members had brought it up at meetings and we all thought it was a good idea, so we called around.”
The snow continued to cause disruptions, with some of the restaurants cancelling because of the forecasted snow, according to Kokkoros. But with New Haven having such a large number of students, it’s no surprise that over ten restaurants, including Chipotle, Brueggers Bagels, Brick Oven Pizza, More Than Pizza, Wings Over New Haven, Subway, Swings, Yorkside Pizza, Broadway Pizza, and Buffalo Wild Wings attended, giving out tasters and flyers of their menus to hungry students.
By holding events around midterms, students get a break from studying, which CampusCompanion.com said is vital to ease stress and anxiety. According to the University of Illinois, more than 30 percent of all college freshmen report feeling overwhelmed a great deal of the time, with 10 percent of college students being diagnosed with depression and 7 percent suffering with anxiety disorders.
Kokkoros said over 200 students attended the event during Southern’s exam period, sophomore nursing student Pamela Nicholas being one of them.
“I decided to come because I wanted to see all the vendors that came and because I know people at ProConn have been discussing this kind of event so I was excited,” said Nicholas. “This is a new kind of event so I’m excited for it.”
Holding events like these for students around campus is important for getting students involved, said Nicholas.
“I think it’s really important, you get a sense of community,” said Nicholas. “I’m part of the Residence Hall Association so I like getting to know people and getting to know what they think is important.”
As well as food stalls lining the Ballroom, the event had fancy dress and photo opportunities, raffle tickets and a DJ, but senior Hannah James said she thought the event could have done with more.
“I do think that this event maybe just needed a little bit more, considering we had to wait so long to get in,” said James. “But it was definitely a good idea and I look forward to trying other similar events.”
James said she, like others, enjoyed the concept of free food and bringing students together around campus.
“I thought it was a really good idea,” said James. “Not only is it a chance for students to get together but also having the opportunity to try different foods in the area. I really enjoy the events that Southern has put on so I’m interested in seeing what else they come up with.”
Despite having ProConn dedicating to organizing events for students, business marketing sophomore Lisa Derogene said it’s common for students to not be aware about what’s going on around campus.
“It’s a very common issue, I hadn’t heard about this at all,” said Derogene. “They only post it up in certain places so not everyone gets to see it. I don’t think people really pay attention to flyers, I think word of mouth is a good way of advertising, flyers work but I think word of mouth is the best way. They try [to put on events]. Dr. Tyree has definitely put on more this year, but Southern tries, but I think people just don’t take the opportunity sometimes when it’s in their face.”
