August 26,1992 page six
J Si
Campus News
Jennifer Hartig—more than SGA President
By Amity Brown and
Sonali Kolhatkar
Mounds of paperwork, con
stant phone calls, and late hours are old
hat for Jennifer Hartig, President of the
Student Government Association, af
ter she spent her summer compiling the
Student Activities Calendar and pre
paring for Freshman Orientation.
Jennifer, an Asheville, NC na
tive, is now a senior at Meredith, ma
joring in political studies with a con
centration in environmental studies and
a minor in fitness.
Jennifer’s interest in student
leadership began when she ran for Sen
ate as a freshman. She said, “The fact
tha 11 even ran was an accomplishment
in itself because I came to Meredith not
knowing anyone.” H ow e ve r,
Jennifer’s interests are not exclusive to
student government. In fact, Jennifer
has worked off and on at Shoney’s
since she was a junior in high school.
She said, “Believe it or not, but my
experinces in Shoneyland have
taught me a lot about life.”
While working at
Shoney’s, Jennifer met Lisa, a
mother of two, who had worked at
Shoney’s for 10 years. Jennifer
called Lisa “the perfect mom” and
added that Lisa had gone back to
school at UNC-Asheville to be a
social studies teacher. She said,
“Lisa always made dean’s list. If I
had so many things stacked against
me, I just don’t know if I could do
it”
Jennifer said she has had
several rewarding experiences at
Meredith, citing her relationships
with her big sister and her little
sisters as the most rewarding. She
said, “That’s why I’m Senior Class
Wishbones Co-Chair, so I can give
a little back to them for all they’ve
given me.”
Additionally, she said that
being president of the SGA was a
Faculty experiences increase
The start of a new academic year
always means a lot of new faces here at
Meredith. This year is unique because,
along with the incoming class of 1996,
Meredith is welcoming 24 new faculty
members to campus. According to
Allen Burris, Dean and Vice President
of the College, a certain amount of
faculty turnover is to be expected, but
this year the numbers are higher than
normal. He attributes this to faculty
members retiring, taking extended
leaves, and resigning and to changes in
temporary staff.
Dean Burris points out that tempo
rary basis, positions are based on a one-
year appointment with an opportu
nity—in most cases—^for renewal at
the end of that period.
The search for new faculty is an inter
departmental process. Dean Burris
explains that new faculty members are
recmited by the individual departments,
and guidedby the dedpartment head.
Applicants are taken from a local—or
possibly event national—pool. While
Dean Burris assists the department head
with the selection process, ultimate
approval of a new staff member
comes from the Board of Trust
ees.
Although Dean Burris stresses
that continuity is important to
Meredith, he feels that new ele
ments are very refreshing. Dean
Burris describes the changes in
faculty as, “an opportunity for new
people new ideas, and new ways
of doing things.” This year virtu
ally every academic department
is opening its doors to new faces
and new opportunities.
way for her to do something for
Meredith, yet Jeimifer also com
mented that her biggest fear as the
SGA presidnt “is not living up to
[her] predecessors.” This comment
reflects what Jennifer calls her big
gest character flaw: perfectionism.
She said, “It causes me to be very
critical of myself.”
Considering.her plans for af
ter graduation, Jermifer said, “I’d love
to get a job teaching aerobics on a
cruise ship for a couple of years - at
least until I decide what I want to get
my masters in, “ revealing that Jen
nifer Hartig is not all business.
file photo
Jennifer Hartig and Sarah Reynolds at Litte Friends Weekend 1992.
Dining hall gets face lift
Belk ready for students return
By Beth Lowry
The “new” Dining Hall pleas
antly surprised Meredith students
returning for fall classes. Renova
tion to the building began in June
and shoulb be completed no the
later than Fall Break.
Belk Dining Hall is used more
that any building on campus by
more people. According to Charles
Taylor, Vice President of Business
and Finance, each year 704 meals
per student are served in the cafete
ria. Since the last renovations took
place 20 years ago, Taylor felt it
was time to upgrade the facility.
Through informal talks with
Meredith students, Taylor discov
ered that the dining hall was much
too noisy and that there was not a
good flow of traffic when getting a
meal. Renovating the cafeteria,
said Taylor, “...was the thing to do
make during more pleasant.”
Constmction of the $300,000
project began in June. The entire
ceiling was demolished and re
placed with acoustic tiles to
elimiante the noise. The heating
and cooling system has been redis
tributed to eliminate gusts of air blow
ing on the students. A new sound
system which will benefit Meredith
programs in the cafeteria will be com
pleted in a couple of weeks. Money
for the project came from the Meredith
Second Century Challenge and from
ARA, the food service company.
Renovation has also occurred in food
service. Pizza, Mexican Bar, Pasta
Bar, Oriental Stir-Fry, and waffles
will be available on an alternating
basis, along with the standard two
entrees. Hamburgers, hot dogs, and
grilled cheese will be available every
day. According to Thad O’ Bryant,
director of Meredith food service, these
features should be available to stu
dents no later than Fall Break, but as
early as the second week of Septem
ber.
O’ Bryant said the renovations,
once completed “will be able to ben
efit more students.” He added that the
renovations were needed “to update
the school and put it in line with other
colleges.” The new Belk Dining Hall
enables food service to offer similar
menus as those at large universities,
such as State and Carolina.