Re: Commuter Free Food Events, Why is This Still a Thing?

When I look back on my undergrad and think about the friends that would help me through thick and thin, I remember that I met many of them through free food events at the Innis Commuter Lounge. Living in residence in first year introduced me to the residence community, but when I moved out in second year, I was isolated once more. Free food events are a mechanism to gather people together to relax and chat amid stressful times. It was where I met my current roommate Hania, who I would come to call a lifelong friend. For me, these events were the very definition of promoting the community at Innis.

An interesting perception exists where people just rush in, rush out, and run off with the food. This was not my experience at all. Between bites, free food was an opportunity to not worry about lunch money and to sit down and socialize with fellow Innisians. The events are well-targeted to commuters like me, where the Innis lounge is like a second home. There have been countless times where I would go to the commuter lounge to wash a Tupperware or sit down and relax to find a welcoming surprise of specialty treats.

It’s also interesting to note a misconception that strangers can come and take food as they please. For the Popeyes event last year, a list was printed out and two ICSS members checked the name and student number of each individual to assure that everyone who received food was an Innis student. The ICSS does not re-post of any free food events in other Facebook pages, though it is impossible to control others from doing so. Of course, I’ll acknowledge that once in a while, someone brings non-Innis friends. However, most of the food does, in fact, go to Innis commuter students. This is the same for annual free food events, such as the athletics banquet and pub nights. Names and students numbers are collected in the sign up process to ensure that only Innis students attend.

The Innis community is comprised of 2000 wonderful students. Hypothetically, if students were to shoulder the $6374.59 for free food events it turns out approximately $3 per person. Compare that to buying a combo at Popeyes individually and the numbers speak for themselves. This is before the consideration that many students cannot afford to eat out. Take, for example, the annual ski trip, an engagement opportunity not based on food. The cost of running such an event is upwards of $60 per person. It requires considerable thought and planning by ICSS members. In my opinion, free food is one of the “biggest bang for our buck” ways to engage the community.

I am glad that current off-campus representatives are creative, imaginative and willing to invest in more than free food events. I am grateful for their creativity, their time and their work as elected volunteers for the Innis community. Of course, the choice remains at the hands of the students to participate in an event or not. When has it ever not been this way? It is not the responsibility of the ICSS to force people into community engagement.

As a student it is easy to criticize budget spending and the events planned. I know how difficult it is having been an undergraduate student myself: sleepless nights and tight purse strings. Remember that the ICSS members give their own free time as volunteers to engage the Innis community. The ICSS members spend considerable time out of their own busy days to ensuring that events are:

1. Accessible to students
2. Held at the right time (no late nights or weekends for commuters!)
3. At the right location (think commuting again!)
4. For the right amount of money

Take for example, Sky Zone: a first-time creative event I wanted to run with my fellow athletics director that never left the drawing board. The event would cost about $1000, but there may not be enough students attending due to the time and location. Every effort is made to engage the most students possible and ensure that student money is spent on the student experience. So, challenge Innis students: what are your ideas? What vision do you see for Innis? May we have the budget one day so events can make it off of the drawing board and become a yearly tradition in which we are proud?

Free food is the time for people to get together. It is the time I know when my friends will congregate in the commuter lounge. And do the students stay engaged? Of course they do. Here I am, graduated from Innis and writing this article. Each time I enter the lounge I see a core group of commuter students that contribute to the Innis community. It is impossible to engage everyone, yet free food is one of the best ways to try.

Sharing a meal at no cost with others is most certainly different than buying food on my own. There is a family away from home to eat with you, listen your stories, and the best thing – not having to worry about how much it costs. In the cold, bleak days of winter, there is the Innis commuter lounge with a warm, chewy pizza. In the stress and madness of midterm season, Innis students welcome me with open arms and a sweet, decadent cookie. Part of what I like so much about Innis is that every dollar is spent on Innis students. May the ICSS continue their work as volunteers in bringing the best experience possible to students so that they may have positive experiences like mine.

– Zihan Cai, former council member of the Innis College Student Society (ICSS)