By Ryan Breen
One of the most important things to a human is food. We rely on healthy food choices to give us the strength our body needs in order to strive and be successful students, and people in general. Here at Virginia Wesleyan there are many options to choose from in order to get your energy. There are also a few different ways that you can purchase your food on campus.
One of the most common payment options is your VWC meal plan. Most likely, if you are a freshman you will live in V1 or V2 residence halls. What does this mean? This means that you will be able to receive 15 meals a week in the VWC cafeteria. The cafeteria offers a reasonable amount of hours for students to eat and many different foods to choose from. The cafeteria hours are as follows:
Monday – Friday
Breakfast: 7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Continental: 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Lunch: 10:45 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Dinner: 4:45 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Saturday – Sunday
Brunch: 10:45 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Continental: 1:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Dinner: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
The VWC cafeteria website states “We are proud to offer a dining program complete with signature brands and menu selections that include just about every item you can imagine.”
Featuring options such as:
Fresh fruit and salads
Homestyle entrées
Freshly baked pizza
Deli choices
Specially made grill choices
Ice cream and assorted desserts
Various soups
More information on the VWC cafeteria and their food providers can be found at www. vwcdining.sodexomyway.com
For an option besides the VWC cafeteria, there is also the marlin restaurant also known as The Grille. The Grille is a great place to grab a quick bite to eat in-between classes. The Grille’s operating hours are as follows:
Monday – Thursday: 8:30 a.m.-9:00 p.m.
Friday: 8:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
The Grille allows students to pay with cash, flex dollars, meal equivalency, and marlin dollars. Flex dollars are awarded to every student with a VWC meal plan. Depending on the plan, certain amounts of money are placed on student IDs. This form of payment can only be used at The Grille. For 15 swipes a week meal plan, students will each get $100 a semester.
Meal equivalency allows students to use up to $3.50 for lunch and $3.75 toward dinner at The Grille. These can only be used at times when the cafeteria is not serving food. This is a good option when your flex dollars are running low and you do not feel like eating at the cafeteria. Marlin dollars are when a student’s parents, themselves and/or family member chooses to put money into their account. This money can also be used at The Grille and the bookstore.
As you can see, there are a lot of options at VWC in order to eat and pay for your food.
Get involved, find a home by Lauren Kingsbury
Coming into college can be an overwhelming experience. Everyone will feel some type of unfamiliarity, whether from being hours away from home, sharing a room with someone, having to make a whole new set of friends, or taking classes that you never thought you would take.
You might be thinking should I try and join a sports team? Should I rush a fraternity or a sorority? Should I volunteer? A great way to meet new people is through clubs and organizations. If you think about it, everyone in a particular club or organization shares at least one thing in common. Despite Virginia Wesleyan being a small school, there are over 50 clubs and organizations and there truly is something for everyone. Getting involved early is one way to ensure that you will make the most out of your four years here.
One of the biggest organizations on campus is Wesleyan Activities Council (WAC). WAC is a student programming board that provides social, educational, and community-building activities on campus. It is the primary programming of the Office of Student Activities. WAC does a variety of things throughout the year like hold socials and dances for students. WAC membership is open to full-time, undergraduate students of Virginia Wesleyan who are in good judicial standing and have at least a 2.5 cumulative grade point average.
“It feels really nice knowing that you get to help in the de-stressing process for students, even if it is only for an hour. WAC brings comedians, magicians, and bands to school. My personal favorite was when there was laser tag in the C–MAC,” said former WAC student, senior Ryan Breen.
There are several positions in WAC that are open to anyone who meets the above
requirments. The application and interview process takes places in November of each school year.
If WAC doesn’t really seem like your thing, don’t worry. There are plenty of other clubs and organizations on campus. To name some of the clubs and organizations Virginia Weleyan offers, there is Black Student Union, Classics Club, Games and Strategies Club, Habitat for Humanity, LGBTQS Club, Phenomenal Woman, Young Life, and Student Government Association (SGA). Of course, there are many other clubs and organizations offered.
Classics Club is open to any student majoring or minoring in Classical Studies, as well as any student who is interested in learning about classical civilizations.
“We’re a fairly recent organization, we were just restarted this year, and we’re basically just a little organization where people with an appreciation of Classics can meet up,” said junior Liz Quamme, “We had the Classics Club Olympics planned but it got rained out, but we are trying to do another event like that in the upcoming semester!”
The President for the Classic Club is junior Collette Vauthier.
The Games and Strategies Club brings together people who are interested in video games as well as various activities. These activities can take place indoors or outdoors. If the Games and Strategies Club is of interest to you, seek out senior Christian Menchhofer
Habitat for Humanity coordinates habitat workdays for students with the South Hampton Roads chapter of Habitat for Humanity, and senior Sierra Brown can provide more information.
Phenomenal Women seeks to cultivate the leader that is already within each individual, giving them the power to define their success. If you would like more information about Phenomenal Women, you can contact senior Jasmine Burrell. Young Life, Spiritual Life, opportunity for students who want to grow in the faith and serve their community through leading local high school and middle school students.
Student Government Association (SGA) serves as the liaison between the students and the administration. SGA and class senators hold many events on campus for students.
President senior Cassandra McEwan said, “It is my pleasure to help and head one of the organizations that serve the VWC community. SGA strives to fulfill all the needs and address all the concerns brought to us. We cannot fix everything, but we will do everything in our power to make this the best place possible to live and learn.” If you would like more information about SGA, seniors Cassandra McEwan or Jeanice Reed can help you get involved.
If writing is your thing, check out The Marlin Chronicle…you won’t regret it. Senior Kellie Lagoy is the Editor-in-Chief and junior Courtney Herrick is the Managing Editor.
Obviously these are not all of the clubs and organizations Wesleyan has to offer. The complete list can be found on the website under ‘Student Life.’ If there is not anything that interests you, you can even start your own club or organization. The best way to make friends is to find something that interests you. Who knows, you might become best friends with someone you never thought you would be friends with.
