After hours of library research and staring at a computer screen, eating a Milky Way bar or a tiny sandwich from a vending machine can't always satiate a student's appetite. Opening a caf+â-¬ in Bracken Library, therefore, seems to be a brilliant plan - the caf+â-¬ will create a place where students can eat a meal while studying or drink coffee while holding group meetings. It makes all kinds of sense.
The problem with the university's current plan for the Bookmark Caf+â-¬ @ Bracken Library, which will open for Fall Semester, is the vision behind it. University Libraries and Dining Service have come together to plan an "upscale" caf+â-¬ and coffee shop - meaning some Ball State students might not even be able to afford it.
Dining Service officials have likened the planned caf+â-¬ to a Starbucks atmosphere. They must have overlooked the fact that there's a caf+â-¬ right across the street that serves Starbucks coffee.
Also across the street is The Atrium, which offers coffee, baked goods, sandwiches, salads and soups, just as the planned caf+â-¬ will offer. A short walk in the other direction would bring students to the dining hall in Noyer Complex, which offers all the same foods. And both of these dining facilities are open during most of the hours the caf+â-¬ will be serving food.
Certainly, the caf+â-¬ will offer different selections than either the Atrium or Noyer - potentially more palate-friendly alternatives to the standard dining fare. But students generally haven't been looking for more expensive dining options. If students want $5 sandwiches, they already have several dining facilities to choose from. In fact, overpriced sandwiches, soups and salads seem to be Dining Service's specialty.
What students need - and what they really want - is reasonably priced food in convenient locations. A library caf+â-¬ that offers more extensive options than the vending machines will be welcomed with open arms, but it would be welcomed with the open arms of even more students if the food were as cheap as it is delicious.
The university shouldn't throw out the atmosphere, building and furnishing ideas already planned, but it should consider re-writing the menu to offer foods that fit student budgets - especially for those without meal cards.
It might take focus groups and more student polls, but before the university cuts the red ribbon to open this caf+â-¬, it better be sure students are interested in the food it stocks.
Otherwise, the library won't be any more full and neither will students' stomachs.
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