For much of Swarthmore’s history, students faced the reality of Sharples’ abbreviated hours: if you didn’t make it by the 8 p.m. closing time, you were going into the night without dinner. Student athletes would oftentimes be forced into rushing to the dining hall from away games, long practices, or rehab in the training room.
As part of the project to revamp the Sharples dining hall, weekday closing hours were pushed back to 9:30 p.m. this semester, and a new meal bloc, colloquially referred to as the “5th Meal” emerged, with basic dinner offerings like chicken tenders, fries, and a limited supply of what has been served for dinner that evening. This change allowed athletes to get the important nutrition and calories they need after a long day of training or intense game days.
Junior pole vaulter Ary Henry ’28 has been enjoying the extended hours, especially to meet the nutritional requirements of those who are both college athletes and dedicated students.
“I think that the extended dining hall hours will really allow athletes to get the proper nutrition they need to perform at the high level of a D3 college athlete,” she said, with fellow athletes nodding in approval. By extending the dining hall hours, athletes don’t have to resort to late-night dining options (such as Crumb or Sci Chinese food) that may be less nutritionally complete than the new offerings.
Not only do the extended dining hours offer student athletes an easier time meeting their nutritional needs, but they also allow teams to build important chemistry outside of practice. Professor of Anthropology Farha Ghannam reflected that “eating together is an important activity that fosters commensality, strengthens relationships, and creates shared memories. It can be an excellent way to build team spirit and cultivate strong connections.”
I’ve definitely felt a much stronger connection to the track and field team after we started to have more regular team dinners, and it is always easy to spot Swarthmore’s sports teams during extended hours clustered at a table discussing both amusing stories from the day’s practice as well as upcoming exams, residence hall mishaps, and relationship problems.
However, the new dining hours are not without their own drawbacks. Team meals may at times feel forced or limiting to student athletes.
“In the past, I’ve heard from some of the students that they felt restricted or obligated to eat with their teammates and, as a result, missed out on the chance to socialize and connect with others,” Ghannam said. The extra time spent with teammates due to the extended hours seems to alienate some athletes from their non-athlete friends whom they may not get the chance to talk to during the day.
Dining hall workers are also not too keen on the extended hours. An employee said that the extension “was redundant, especially with the Crumb Cafe being fully open, and leads to unnecessary late nights.” The long line for the Crumb Cafe is hard to miss during these extended hours, often drawing more students than the dining hall itself.
Students with dietary restrictions are not accommodated in the limited options available during extended dining hours. Mimansa Kumar ’30 brings up that “Verdant [and Vegan, the plant-based dining station] closes at 8 p.m. when upstairs dining closes, [which] makes it difficult to find nutritious dinner options as a vegetarian.” She told The Phoenix that she often has dance rehearsals in the evenings before going to dinner, and struggles with the lack of vegetarian offerings; “I usually eat pizza, which isn’t necessarily best for recovery after exercise. I imagine that people who are vegan would have even more struggle.”
While extended dining hall hours have received a generally positive reaction from athletes, as they encourage team bonding and better nutrition, they affect dining hall workers and fail to fully accommodate students with dietary restrictions. This presents a challenge that Swarthmore may need to work through as this new phase of the dining hall matures.
