How UWT plans to keep students around campus after class

New events and food options are coming to campus in Autumn Quarter to create a campus that encourages students to stick around.

By Michaela Ely

The UWT administration has recently provided a few new opportunities around campus to improve student life, including Food Truck Tuesdays and several Welcome Days events for incoming students.

On Sept. 18, Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Mentha Hynes-Wilson announced that UW Tacoma will be receiving brand new features to encourage student life on campus and meet student needs. From more food options to new events starting this quarter, these are features seen mainly at UW Seattle!

One of the most recent opportunities that UWT has seen is the Tuesday Food Truck days that started Oct.1. The schedule for Food Truck Tuesdays shows them scheduled out until Dec. 3, with the food trucks rotating out every week. UWT expects this to be a year-long program. These food trucks are a part of the year’s mission announced at the leadership orientation on Sept. 18 to create a “sticky campus,” meaning that administrators want students to stay on campus to hang out and study, not just attend class. The food trucks fill the desires of students to have more food options on campus, something that was revealed in ASUWT surveys in 2023.

“The current plan to improve student life on campus includes the introduction of Food Truck Tuesday. We have partnered with different vendors, and food trucks will roll through campus each week to provide moderately priced options. We will expand the number of trucks and their time on campus if we receive positive feedback,” Hynes-Wilson said.

Food options on campus will also be provided by the Nourish Mobile Food Pantry which will add short-term and immediate options, bringing free food and groceries to the TPS parking lot on Thursdays from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The Pantry at UWT is also being revamped as the Office of Student Affairs took it over during the summer.

“We built on the good work of the CEI, revamped the look and feel of the space, which is located on the ground floor of William Philip Hall 010 [WPH] and partnered with others to increase culturally relevant food choices. We plan to add recipe cards and videos with tips to prepare easy one-skillet meals using items from the pantry shelves to the website,” Hynes-Wilson said.

There are also several student events planned for the Quarter. Many are already posted to DubNet, including dance classes at the UWY, classes at the Makerspace in Snoqualmie Building and a new MicroForest planting project outside of the Dougan Building.

“My colleagues will tell you I have tons of ideas, ranging from building a new residence and dining hall to creating more greenspace and outdoor programming space, expanding healthcare and wellness options, opening a childcare facility and establishing a UWT drumline. Naturally, I want to elevate the fun factor and am open to supporting more registered student organizations and sports clubs,” Hynes-Wilson said.

The goal is for UWT students to feel a larger sense of belonging, allowing them to connect with each other beyond classes, according to Hynes-Wilson.

“I think that more events on campus may likely encourage students to diversify their community, as it can be hard to make meaningful connections within your typical four years of school. Events that I remember going to most include convocation, UW block party, and a spring CAC [communication, art and culture] mixer. Seeing familiar and new folks made me feel more included and welcomed, as we discussed various topics over food and laughs,” UWT Student Aleece Thurman told the Ledger.

This quarter showed a class size that UWT hadn’t seen since the pandemic. The hope is that the trend will continue and help to increase enrollment.

“Enrollment is always at the top of our minds, and we are turning a corner and seeing enrollment growth. For the Autumn Quarter, we are welcoming 1700 new students – a class size we have not seen before the pandemic. It has been wonderful to see how UWT faculty and staff have come together to strengthen the in-class and out-of-class experiences. This is our campus, and all interactions matter and ultimately contribute to the ability to recruit, enroll and retain undergraduate and graduate students,” Hynes-Wilson said.

The food trucks will be in front of WPH on Tuesdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and new events can be found on DubNet in the following Quarters.