Radcliffe May Drop Sit-Down Dinners

Radcliffe will abolish its present system of sit-down meals with student waitresses beginning next September, Marjorie L. Russ, Radcliffe dietician, announced yesterday.

The sit-down meals will be replaced by a cafeteria system similar to the one now in use at Harvard. Each Radcliffe House however, will retain the option of having some sit-down meals.

Professional Study

The decision was reached following a study of the Radcliffe dining system by a professional consulting firm. A plan announced earlier this year to place all Radcliffe girls on a full room and board system forced the change. As a result of that decision, 400 girls will be eating in each House unit instead of the present 250-300.

Under the new plan, student waitresses will not be needed unless a dorm opts for sit-down meals. Two dormitories, Eliot Hall and Bertman Hall, will have their kitchens closed completely. A portable meal server will be installed in each dining room, along with coffee and beverage machines. Dining rook hours will be extended to include two hours for breakfast and dinner, in addition to the present two hour lunch.

Miss Russ announced the decision to the Work Program Evaluation Committee, a Radcliffe committee which has been working under the direction of Susan S. Olson, Dean of Residence. This committee strongly recommended that Radcliffe Houses be allowed to retain sit-down meals part of the time. For example, in East House, Cabot Hall might serve only buffet and Whitman Hall might serve sit-down meals, at least on interhousing nights. "Nobody wants to lose the personal flavor of the dining atmosphere," Miss Olson said. The recommendations of this committee will be presented to RGA March 31 for final discussion and approval.

After RGA approval of the plan, committees will be set up in each of Radcliffe's three Houses to work out details. A committee of Radcliffe work chairmen will also be formed to evaluate the program when it goes into effect next year.

Radcliffe girls had mixed reactions to the new plan, Lucy M. Candib '63 expressed the most common opinion when she said "Although buffet meals are more efficient and will make meals speedier for everyone it would tend to be barbaric if there were no opportunity for sit-down meals." Another sophomore said she thought "much better conversation gets going when you have buffet meals."