STORY BY GIULIANA LAMANTIA
Drake University students are serving up new information with a chapter of Spoon University to launch next week.
Spoon University is an online publication run by college students providing easy recipes, local restaurant reviews, dining hall hacks and virtually anything to do with food. Colleges with a Spoon chapter have their own page on the site with articles specific to their school and area.
Marketing director and sophomore TJ Poll had the idea to begin a chapter of Spoon at Drake when his friend started one at Villanova University.
Poll looks forward to learning about and showcasing different places to eat around Des Moines, as well as different ways to eat at Hubbell and Quad.
“People definitely know about most restaurants around Drake like Fernando’s, but there are places downtown we can talk about to open people’s eyes,” Poll said.
Vice President of Operations and sophomore Sarah Grace Nicholson encourages students to utilize the information provided on the site.
“There are some really cool articles about eating healthy or eating cheaply or making things on campus with the resources we have,” Nicholson said. “If you live in the dorms, Hubbell is basically your only option, so we are writing articles on how to utilize Hubbell the best you can.”
With the summer coming up, the staff has not advertised much thus far, however, they plan to market more in the fall by going to the activities fair and setting up events and a launch party with free food samples.
Poll encourages students to get involved with Spoon because of the multiple opportuinties it offers.
“If you’re looking to get involved, it’s a good way to meet people,” Poll said. “If you have a passion for food, this is obviously the place for you, and at any age it’s a good resume builder.”
During the summer, the staff plans to continue writing and move on to more in-depth work in the fall.
Editor-in-chief and sophomore Beth LeValley has enjoyed meeting new people and gaining professional experience.
“It’s fun to bond with everyone and meet a whole bunch of new people,” LeValley said. “Its fun writing, but it’s also professional because it’s going to an actual company rather than just a student-led organization, which has really been beneficial.”
LeValley encourages students to read the publication for the handy information it provides and a tone geared toward college students.
“It’s all catered towards college students,” LeValley said. “We write for them. Most of the recipes can be done in dorm rooms — all of them so far have been done in dorm rooms. We’ve got a surprising tone for the publication. It’s kind of like Buzzfeed but more food oriented.”
Students interested in getting involved in writing, editing, photography or marketing positions can apply at drake.spoonuniversity.com.
