Council Outlines Food Poll

The Student Council last night ordered a detailed poll to find out how the College likes its food.

After arguing for two hours on how to grant Dean Bender's request for "solid evidence" on dining hall troubles, the Council settled on a specific poll to find out exactly which foods students like and dislike and why.

The Council's first public session of the term was attended by 17 students in Kirkland Common Room.

The poll will be drawn up by the Council's Student Welfare Committee in consultation with Social Relations department poll experts and with representatives of Bender and vice-President Reynolds. The survey may discard traditional "yes" and "no" methods and instead sample undergraduate sentiment by means of personal interviews.

Bender Questions Value

Council members voted 12 to 1 for the poll, with two abstaining, despite the fact that Bender, who attended the meeting, said he was "skeptical about the value of a poll."

Bender and the Council first clashed on the question of an investigation of dining halls by outside experts. The Dean said such a survey was opposed by the Administration for two reasons.

1) The investigation might cost $5,000, "and we have to watch every penny."

2) Such action by the University would "imply that (dining hall managers) are not competent.... It would be a slap in the face."

Will Accept Convincing Results

However, if the Council presents "a solid basis for the feeling that something is wrong," Bender said, the University might order a study anyhow. "But you can't say, 'Everybody thinks the food stinks,'" Bender explained. "You've got to have evidence."

The Council argued these points briefly. but then the members turned to the issue of culinary evidence. Bender urged that committees in the Houses work with stewards and students "to see if there is anything radically wrong."

One member pointed out, however, that the Council urged the Houses to set up such committees four weeks ago, and it was later disclosed that only two Houses have acted on the suggestion.

"The Council apparently doesn't favor my plan," Bender said, and then conceded, "You could construct a poll that would give useful information." Pressed by the Council, however, he would not guarantee that poll results would cause the University to schedule an outside investigation.

The Council rejected two other proposals for briefer polls after Bender indicated that they would not give the Administration enough specific data.

In an attempt to goad the Houses into studying College food, the Council restated its month-old motion on House food committees and directed House representatives on the Council to get the program started