CRAs Decry Ross Vandalism

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Sunday Sept. 29
2:30 a.m: The new Ross Dining Hall gets trashed.
6 a.m: The Ross dining crew arrives at work to find frozen yogurt and sticky soda dripping down the machines and all over the floor, cereal littering the floors, a smashed card swiper and broken cabinet doors. They estimate the damage at $4,000.
7:00 a.m. on: A discouraged Ross Dining Crew continues to work hard serving up to 1,000 Middlebury students and parents in a dining hall designed for no more than 500 people per meal.
Sunday Oct. 6
6 am: The Ross Dining Crew arrives at work to find their space vandalized once again. A large window is smashed from the inside and food is strewn about the dining hall floor. They estimate the cost for this damage at $2,500.
You may be thinking: "My parents pay $38,500 a year for me to go here. I should be able to do what I want." This is a phrase we have all heard some version of a 1,000 times before. But the fact is that $38,500 dollars DOES NOT give anyone the right to vandalize their community and disrespect the people who work so hard to make this our home.
What if someone did this to your kitchen at home?
Having been college students ourselves for the past four years, we truly do understand the perspective of a student who is frustrated with the College. However, as Commons Residential Assistants, we can honestly say that we know how much more there is more to every situation than meets the eye. If Middlebury students had any idea how many people were involved in trying to make this College a good place for them, I think they'd be shocked, and just maybe some of them would stop taking it for granted.
We ask that you consider not what the College has NOT done with your $38,500, but what the College HAS done with your $38,500. A great many people have been disheartened at these incidents of vandalism, and there is no amount of money that can compensate for that. As a community we can and must ensure that this does not happen again.

Parham Gardner and Meredith Bazirgan are Ross Commons CRAs.