The Real Truth about South Side Cafe
SGA responds to "Let Them Eat Ice Cream"
Rachel Frysztacki
Issue date: 4/30/09 Section: Opinion
As many people know, when a business is handed over to new management, as the café is, the debt of that business should be paid off so that the new management has a fair chance of making it successful. As this debt of $15,000 is the debt of SGA, not SIFE, and to ensure proper business practices are being used, Student Forum voted unanimously to support this transition with the payment of $15,000 to zero the account, as well as provide the café with the $5,000 per semester that it will need to run without going into debt, but to still run as a service provided to students.
Professor Earhart commented, "It would also be very difficult for me to hold the students accountable to be self-sustaining when they start next year with a huge negative balance. It was a wise and correct business decision made by SGA."
Jacob Specht, a member of SIFE, is the student and visionary behind this project, along with Professor Earhart. This is one of many ventures that Jacob has taken on, in addition to TextBookTerminal.com, an online marketplace where Messiah students can buy and sell their textbooks. Jacob explained to me the importance of SGA paying off this debt, as the café will not be able to make the money necessary to do so.
What Jacob explains is the problem is that SSC has a debt of $15,000 that it owes to Messiah College. The idea of not paying this off means that we would forever owe the college $15,000 so that we are able to spend money in other places and further increase programming on campus. This, in Jacob's mind, is "an awful way to manage your finances, and you will end up in a financial disaster." Jacob's response to the many false rumors on campus? "I just want to see the café succeed."
Student Forum apparently shares these feelings. It is important to note that Student Forum, the group that made all of these decisions for SSC, is a body that is made of student representatives and is in place to make decisions on behalf of the student body. Among this group are representatives from residence halls, different class levels, and commuters, along with the presidents of many clubs on campus such as the Agape Center, SAB, the Swinging Bridge, and many more. We feel that this was an appropriate group to make this decision because it is representative of our student body and because we have other organizations' input. All members that were at Student Forum voted in favor of making this change for the future of SSC.
What we hope to see in the café is a space that students will be able to call their own. We hope that it is a service to the student body, as well as a great learning experience for the SIFE team. We also would love to see other clubs and organizations on campus taking advantage of the space as a location for various events. It is our hope that if students have any questions or concerns regarding the café, or any other issues surrounding this, that they would bring them to SGA's attention. We want to hear them!
Please send your emails to SGA@messiah.edu or come visit our office upstairs in the Larsen Student Union. Also, if you are interested in being a part of these sorts of decisions, please consider joining Student Forum next fall.
Professor Earhart commented, "It would also be very difficult for me to hold the students accountable to be self-sustaining when they start next year with a huge negative balance. It was a wise and correct business decision made by SGA."
Jacob Specht, a member of SIFE, is the student and visionary behind this project, along with Professor Earhart. This is one of many ventures that Jacob has taken on, in addition to TextBookTerminal.com, an online marketplace where Messiah students can buy and sell their textbooks. Jacob explained to me the importance of SGA paying off this debt, as the café will not be able to make the money necessary to do so.
What Jacob explains is the problem is that SSC has a debt of $15,000 that it owes to Messiah College. The idea of not paying this off means that we would forever owe the college $15,000 so that we are able to spend money in other places and further increase programming on campus. This, in Jacob's mind, is "an awful way to manage your finances, and you will end up in a financial disaster." Jacob's response to the many false rumors on campus? "I just want to see the café succeed."
Student Forum apparently shares these feelings. It is important to note that Student Forum, the group that made all of these decisions for SSC, is a body that is made of student representatives and is in place to make decisions on behalf of the student body. Among this group are representatives from residence halls, different class levels, and commuters, along with the presidents of many clubs on campus such as the Agape Center, SAB, the Swinging Bridge, and many more. We feel that this was an appropriate group to make this decision because it is representative of our student body and because we have other organizations' input. All members that were at Student Forum voted in favor of making this change for the future of SSC.
What we hope to see in the café is a space that students will be able to call their own. We hope that it is a service to the student body, as well as a great learning experience for the SIFE team. We also would love to see other clubs and organizations on campus taking advantage of the space as a location for various events. It is our hope that if students have any questions or concerns regarding the café, or any other issues surrounding this, that they would bring them to SGA's attention. We want to hear them!
Please send your emails to SGA@messiah.edu or come visit our office upstairs in the Larsen Student Union. Also, if you are interested in being a part of these sorts of decisions, please consider joining Student Forum next fall.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Khara H.
Khara House
posted 4/30/09 @ 5:25 PM EST
Does anyone remember Wilbur's? Though it stopped running before I actually started at Messiah (I think it closed in 03?), I remember going there; I remember being extremely disappointed when I found out it wasn't going to be there when I started as a student. (Continued…)
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