Letter to the Editor for this week’s Maroon News

Below is my article. If any changes are needed, please inform me. Thank you!

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One-sided reporting on Cutten Dining Hall

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I was disappointed to read Margaret Powers’ article “Cutten Dining Hall Closed Since August, But Few Students Notice” in the October 29th issue of The Maroon News. The article was negatively biased and did not even mention the fact that Cutten Dining Hall had groups of loyal patrons who were disappointed when it was shut down over the summer. The food and variety of options at Cutten was obviously not five star, I do not argue with that point, nor do I contend that a larger number of students ate there on a regular basis. Cutten, however, had an atmosphere unlike that of Frank or the Coop. It was a place that close friends could eat dinner and engage in stimulating conversation in a quite, intimate environment without the deafening background noise found in traditional cafeterias. Several groups, including more than a dozen members of the men’s cross country team, ate dinner there nightly. We were devastated that the dining hall closed down, as after several years of nightly meals at the same table, it ended a chapter in the team’s tradition and history. I understand that, for financial reasons, closing the dining hall made sense for the university. Those of us that frequented Cutten have moved on – some to the Edge, some to Frank, and some (including myself) have chose no meal plan at all. This is part of growing up. But to say no students cared or reacted to the closing, or to even say that “no one was eating there in the first place” shows poor reporting on behalf of your newspaper. It was disheartening to read such disregard for a place that holds so many fond memories for me, and it was a slap in the face to alumni such as Chris Sweetland ’02.