The Case of the Missing Take-Out Containers

On January 18, 2026, just hours before residents were scheduled to move in for the upcoming Spring 2026 semester, Jessica Rosano, the Director of Residence Life and Community Standards, sent out an email on behalf of Centenary University and Campus Life stating that the take-out containers at the cafeteria were no longer available. 

“During COVID-19, we introduced disposable to‑go containers to support safety and social distancing,” said Rosano in her email. “While they were important at the time, they have remained in use longer than intended. Today, most meals are still taken to go — and we are all missing opportunities to connect and spend time together on campus.”

This sudden policy change on how students get their food at Cyclone Dining immediately became the topic everyone was talking about on campus. Students are generally not happy; especially those in multiple extracurricular activities.

Athletes On The Run

Athletes on campus have very busy schedules. They often have long days that consist of classes, followed by practices and games.

“When you have an away game and have to catch the bus by a certain time, it's easier to take out your food so you can have it before the game,” said Dominick Chiego, senior communication major and 3rd baseman and catcher on Centenary Baseball’s Team. 

“Going into my senior year, I’m looking forward to volleyball and to continue pursuing my role as a sports journalist; I shouldn’t have to feel forced to eat in the cafe just because this community wants to see students socializing when we could be practicing our sport,” said Nick Storms, junior communication major. “That’s completely reasonable, but not like this; we are young adults and should have the right to make our own decisions. That’s a part of growing up in life.”

For some athletes, they enjoy getting take-out to bond with their teammates. 

“I personally like take-out food from the cafeteria because I like bringing it back to my apartment and eating with my teammates,” said Daniel Gonzalez, junior accounting major who is a part of the wrestling team. “We eat together and watch TV. We bond better in the apartments than in the cafeteria because we’re more comfortable there.”

Never Leaving The Stage 

One of the most grueling majors here at Centenary is musical theatre. They have intense and long practices most days, some starting at 3 p.m. and lasting to 10 pm. This means that naturally, some of these theater students won’t be able to eat dinner at the cafeteria, if at all.

“The take-away containers should be brought back because as theater students, we rehearse day and night and we get 10 minute breaks,” said Hunter Grayce Williams, freshman musical theater major. “During those breaks, we can eat. After that break we have to be back in the theater or whatever rehearsal space we use that day. It’s easy to go to the dining hall and just grab-and- go, but now we have to sit and eat and make it back in time for rehearsal. So now it’s very inconvenient when it used to be very helpful.”

“When there were take-out containers it was great; we were able to run and get food to go and eat it while still being attentive during rehearsals. Now, it's a situation where people just don’t eat during rehearsals, which leads to low energy, dehydration, and fatigue,” said Maximus Klerence, sophomore musical theatre major. 

Some may be thinking, can't these types of circumstances get accommodations for students? Well, for Klerence that wasn’t the case. 

“I tried getting a special accommodation because of theatre to get take-out, and I was just sent to a bunch of different offices and people said they couldn’t help,” said Klerence.

Not Only Residents 

This take-out container fiasco does not only affect residents; it also makes it difficult for commuters. 

“As a commuter, I often spend 6 to 8 hours on campus with little time in between classes, meaning that I go the whole day without eating,” said Samantha Swayze, sophomore writing major. “I only have 20 minutes between my classes, which does not give me enough time to eat in the cafeteria and make it to class on time. This causes me to skip breakfast and/or lunch.”

Not only is this causing many students to not be able to eat throughout their busy days, but it's also causing the cafeteria to lose money. The students end up being forced to spend their money elsewhere for food that is not good for them.

“The cafe offers a small selection of snacks and drinks you can grab to-go, but they consist of chips, soda, and other less nutritious options,” said Swayze. “It’s so important for students—especially college students with varying schedules—to fuel their bodies with healthy food in order to participate in class well, and not being able to take their lunch to-go and having to stick to chips to ‘hold them off’ until dinner is truly upsetting.” 

“I am not affected too much by the lack of take-out containers, but now that they’re gone, I definitely won’t be going into the cafeteria because I don’t want to eat alone,” said Elizabeth May, sophomore writing major. 

Work Study

There are many students at Centenary who have to balance both school and work. This change makes it hard for our own student workers to eat during their long shifts. 

“When I journal for the sport teams, I want to be able to grab some food to eat quickly before the game so I am energized and not rushing around,” said Storms. “If I don’t get to eat before a game, I am not able to express myself in my writing as much since I don’t have the energy to do so.” 

“I really believe they should bring back the take-out containers because people who work long hours sometimes don’t feel like sitting down to eat. All they want to do is get their food, go back to their room and get settled to relax.” said Emma Aguilar, sophomore forensic science major. 

“Because of this change in dining, I can’t bring food to the Writing Collaboratory,” said Tanner Sullivan, senior communication major. “As a tutor who’s there three days a week, it leaves me in kind of an odd position. Now, I have to find time in my schedule solely to go to the dining hall and eat. I can’t load up a container, head to the Collaboratory, and eat at my own leisure. So that convenience is now gone, which can be a pain on days when I don’t have any free time before my shift.”

Classes, Classes, and More Classes

“The to-go containers were super convenient for time; I could take food to class or anywhere else if I was in a rush or a time crunch,” said Sullivan. “Now, I have to awkwardly make time to go to the cafeteria into my schedule; if not, I won't be able to eat a full meal for the bulk of the day.”

“It is really hard to get a meal in sometimes when you're in a rush and need to get to your next class or meeting,” said Chiego. 

The Endless Cycle of Anxiety 

Many college students experience social anxiety and want to be able to eat by themselves in their dorms because that is where they feel the most comfortable and safe. Now, students are unable to do so and have to eat in a place where they don’t feel comfortable.

“There are many students with anxiety who don’t want to eat in front of people and want their alone time,” said Max Ruzyki, junior business marketing major. “When I’m alone I feel like I'm being stared at constantly.” 

“I am not saying that it is not good that people will have to eat with others, but some people do not like eating in the cafeteria and I understand that because with my anxiety I need my alone time and sometimes eating in your own space is more comforting,” said Victoria Autocunas, junior social work major with a journalism minor.

The student’s voices need to be heard!

“We are in college for a reason,” said Storms. “We came for freedom of choices, not to feel incarcerated.” 

“There should be other activities taking place to build a community, you shouldn’t have to take away a service to force participation,” said Carmella Vitel, senior communication major.

“If we were given some sort of warning before the change, it would’ve been better, but to make a change that affects a bunch of students suddenly is downright disrespectful to us as the students,” said Dave Annisafee, senior communication major.

“While I understand the idea of wanting to get students to socialize, students are already able to connect across campus, not just the dining hall,” said Sullivan. 

“Someone tell me why they have take-out containers during late night for the bowls but we can’t have them during other times,” said Carlee Nigro, junior writing major with a minor in criminal justice.

“I believe that the take-out containers should be available for a limited time during the day,” said Aguilar. “Maybe, 50 can be available and once that runs out for the day, they can’t be used anymore. This way, the cafeteria can still reduce waste and keep students happy.” 

What does the school have to say?

Derek Loux, the General Manager of Dining Services for Sodexo, was asked if he wanted to make a comment about the take-out containers. However, his only response was “the University made the decision,” in addition to forwarding the January email sent by Roasano.

The Cyclone Chronicle Staff then reached out via email to Rosano, the director of residence life and community standards.

“The transition away from to-go containers was communicated to students in a January 18 email, following conversations that began last semester,” said Rosano. “While these containers were introduced during COVID-19 to support safety, they remained in use longer than intended. In partnership with student representatives from SGA, the University made the decision to move away from them to reduce waste, manage rising costs—each container costs over $1—and encourage more opportunities for connection through shared meals in the dining hall. We understand that some students may still need meals on the go, and we are committed to working with those students to ensure their needs are supported. Accommodations can be made through our Accessibility Services team in collaboration with our Sodexo Dining partners.”

For many years, the take-out containers have been a central part of Centenary student’s routine. Students would be able to go in and out of the cafeteria to get a nutritious meal and be able to eat in their class, dorm, or meeting. But now, that service is not available, and it has ruined many students’ routines on campus. 

Why are we letting so many students miss a meal just to “build a community” that we already made?