Trying to stay health-conscious on a college campus is a difficult task when students are constantly low on time and money. Often times, students rely solely on Cabrini’s dining services to get their meals and snacks on the daily. To many students, eating healthy is a priority and it can be very difficult when they are constantly tempted with quick, cheap, unhealthy snacks.
Cabrini’s dining options— CAVs Corner, Jazzman’s, Sandella’s, CAVs Shack and the RAC Grille— offer a wide variety of food and snacks.
In CAVs Corner, there is a daily salad bar with veggies and baskets of fresh fruit to snack on.
Jazzman’s and Sandella’s offer snacks, such as vegetables and dip, fruit cups, yogurt parfaits and more.
The newest dining option on campus, CAVs Shack, located in the Dixon Center, offers fresh fruit smoothies and healthy snacks for students.
Students who eat the majority of their meals on campus may have the intention to go for the healthy meal choices, but when they enter CAVs Corner and see the limp lettuce and unappealing salad toppings, grabbing a slice of pizza or plate of macaroni and cheese seems like the better option.
“I try my best to find something healthy to snack on in between classes,” Jennifer Meier, a freshman business management major, said. “I commute to school, so I eat my meals at home. I can usually count on Jazzman’s or CAVs Corner to have something light and healthy that I don’t feel guilty eating, but sometimes it’s difficult to find healthy snacks I like.”
The RAC Grille has late night snack options for students. Its menu consists of items such as burgers, fries, onion rings, quesadillas and much more. At night, this is the only dining option available to students. After 8 p.m. on campus, finding a healthy snack is a challenge.
“I think the RAC is more known for their greasy, unhealthy food,” Robbie Brosh, a junior exercise science and secondary history education major, said. “There are options like chicken wraps and sometimes fruit cups, if you’re looking for something lighter, but I personally go to the RAC for cheesesteaks or mozzarella sticks, not healthy food.”
Some students say that if more healthy food was easily available to them, they would choose snacks that are better for them instead of unhealthy foods.
In May 2011, City University of New York initiated a campaign for healthy food. The program was designed to improve healthy food choices in CUNY cafeterias, vending machines and meetings. The program educated CUNY students about the importance of a healthy diet and inspired them to take part in their healthy eating campaign.
The students of Cabrini University can also be inspired by CUNY’s successful initiative and request a better variety of healthy snack and meal options to be available in CAVs Corner, Jazzman’s, Sandella’s and the RAC.
“I would love to see more fresh fruit and vegetables on campus,” Marissa Loro, a senior education major, said. “Most of the dining options at Cabrini give you healthy options but I still have to go food shopping to get fresh fruits and vegetables for the week. It would be awesome if there was a larger variety of healthy snacks that students could just grab and go.”
