NICOLE KLIEST
Staff Writer
It’s a Wednesday night and all your friends are cooped up in the library. Your crisis is finding someone to eat dinner with. Now, thanks to the new program Dine With a Student, you will never have this problem again.
Dine With a Student was launched this semester with the hopes of strengthening relationships between faculty and students.
How the program works is a faculty or staff member is asked by a student (or asks a student) out to eat in the Waves Café or Oasis. The faculty or staff member is provided with a meal card worth $15 and off to eat they go.
The program was designed with the intent of the meal card going towards the faculty or staff’s meal however, if the student is not equipped with a meal plan, the meal card can be used for both meals.
Seaver faculty or staff members may participate in the program once per week: providing everyone numerous opportunities to take full advantage of not only the delicious food, but the bonding experience as well. The University is funding the program through the office of Student Affairs.
Ron Cox jumpstarted this program on Pepperdine’s undergraduate campus due to his previous experiences with it. He is a Seaver alumnus who returned this year to teach in the Religion Division.
It all started for him one day at a previous institution he taught at when he was asked to leave the cafeteria. He had brought with him a brown-bag lunch in efforts to get to know students in an environment other than the classroom. However, since he was not eating the institution’s cafeteria food, he was asked to leave. After consultation with administrators at the institution, free meals to faculty who eat with students were provided. So began the birth of Dine With A Student.
Dr. Cox stated that this program improved the quality of his teaching. His lunchtime interactions helped him get to know his students better and his appreciation of student life outside the classroom was bettered.
Thanks to Ron Cox, Dine With a Student was transported to Pepperdine and will hopefully become a well-loved and enjoyed tradition.
Dean of Student Affairs Mark Davis has been highly involved with getting this program jumpstarted. On January 23, 2006 he sent a memo to all Seaver faculty and staff providing information about the program.
Since then, faculty members from every division have been using the program. “I hope more will join,” Davis said. “as they hear the positive benefits from their colleagues and students.
Pepperdine’s population is proportionately small in comparison to other universities. This opens up a world of opportunities for students to develop stronger and more meaningful relationships with professors. “One of the special things about Pepperdine is the caring relationships we develop with students.” Davis said. “The Dine With a Student program is another way we can make that connection.”
A catch phrase that has been making its way around campus is the “Pepperdine experience.” This experience includes a variety of opportunities like New Student Orientation, Campus Ministry, Greek Life, Intramural Club Sports, the Volunteer Center and other countless organizations.
“Not only does Dine With a Student help create a caring community,” Davis said. “it also increases student learning and satisfaction with their Pepperdine experience.”
Another huge purpose for this program is to give attention to new students who are feeling uninvolved. “I don’t want anyone to fall between the cracks.” Davis said. “This program will give faculty and staff the opportunity to reach out to someone who appears to be hurting.”
It goes without saying that anyone who enters a student’s life with the intent of getting to know him or her on a personal level is going to be appreciated. It isn’t enough to just make acquaintances with students; college is perhaps the most apt time to get to know people outside of your age range.
“We have so much to learn from each other’s stories.” Davis said. “We are in a better position to support each other when we share our hopes, dreams, struggles and victories.”
Past Pepperdine President Norvel Young used to say, “You never know the good you’re doing.” “This is true of the Dine With a Student program.” Davis said. “We’ll probably never know how a simple meal together may make a lasting impression on a student’s life.”
Another interesting angle to view this program at is through a Christian perspective. Throughout the Bible Jesus ate meals with people: the homeless, the sick, the handicapped and even the rich. “I think He was on to something about human nature.” Davis said.” When we share a meal with someone, we nourish both the body and the soul.”
So nourish the body and the soul and get involved with this program. You can ask your favorite (or perhaps lesser of favorite) faculty or staff member out to eat and learn something about that individual. This program has nothing to lose and everything to gain.
The program is available for activity any day of the week and any meal of the day. Just contact any full-time Seaver faculty or staff member and work it into a suitable schedule.
For further questions, contact the office of the Dean of Student Affairs.
04-20-2006