Late Night at the Berkshire Dining Common has been a success since the Fall 2006. There have been a few minor problems since its creation pertaining to stolen food, plates and utensils. More recently, however, a more serious problem has occurred.
Students have used their backpacks to sneak alcohol into the Berkshire DC. Employees have found empty beer cans rotating around the tray conveyor, in trash cans and under tables.
Assistant Manager Ryan Pipczynski, along with the Berkshire DC staff have implemented a new rule making it mandatory to leave bags outside the eating quarters of the DC starting at 9:30 p.m.
This problem was apparent to Berkshire DC staff members last semester but they felt it would be much less of a shake-up if the new rule was implemented at the beginning of this semester.
“I am aware of the culture of Southwest and college in general and by no means am I trying to infringe on anyone’s civil rights; I am just taking the proper steps so that the DC is safe at night,” Pipczynski said.
“People should be able to take their bags anywhere they want so they can keep an eye on their personal belongings,” said University of Massachusetts senior Tabari Abdallaa.
Pipczynski is aware of the concerns students have about leaving their valuables unattended and has created a new position, a bag watcher, to solve this issue.
“A few kids have come in with valuables and didn’t want to lock them up but other than that people get used to it, we have had this rule for a couple weeks now,” said new bag watcher David Anderson.
Since the new rule has been implemented, Anderson has said there has not been any problem with missing bags.
Many students are frustrated with the new policy and some think it could possibly be dangerous.
“I went to a public high school and it was mandatory that if we saw an unattended bag we had to notify administration because there could be a bomb or something harmful inside of it; this new rule could potentially be dangerous,” said freshman Sarah Davis.
Pipczynski hopes that students will understand why this rule has been applied and that in the future they will learn not to bring their bags to Late Night.
“If you live in Southwest, the most you will need when going to Late Night is your UCard, cell phone and coat,” said Pipczynski. “However we do provide lockers at the DC, so if someone needs to bring their bag with them, they have the option to lock it up.”
“I am annoyed with this new rule because I have stuff I need to work on,” senior Brian Lindsey commented as he was denied bringing in his school bag to Late Night.
Late Night has been on the chopping block in the past and Pipczynski said if this issue had not been addressed Late Night could have been canceled.
Originally, Berkshire’s Late Night was meant to occur on a small scale and take in around only 50-200 students per night with a limited amount of food and seating available. Eventually, it grew into a favorite for UMass students and currently pulls in over 1,000 students a night with a record of over 1,400.
Josh Walovitch can be reached at [email protected].
