Juniors leave eating clubs for independent option

Song, who said he always planned to leave Charter after a year, is one of several juniors who will leave their eating clubs to become independent as seniors. Song explained in an e-mail that he decided to go independent in order to “grow personally and become more self-sufficient,” while other former club members said they left because of financial considerations.

Kok Hou Chia ’11, who is leaving Colonial Club, decided to go independent “because of the thousands of dollars I will literally be able to save,” he said.

“I can spend my financial aid money on other things like airfare,” said the Brunei native, for whom a roundtrip plane ticket home can cost at least $2,000.

Krishnan Mody ’11, who is also leaving Colonial, said in an e-mail that he has not gone to his club “often enough to justify the financial investment.”

Mody said he does not eat more frequently in Colonial because of the club’s distance from his room and classes. He also noted that his close friends in Colonial have such widely varying schedules that he rarely sees them even when he does venture to the club.

Mody said he never had strong feelings about joining an eating club.

“My decision to quit was not because I disliked the club, but more because I didn’t find it appealing enough to justify the investment,” Mody explained. “That is to say, the club didn’t do anything particularly wrong to upset me, but it didn’t do anything particularly interesting to overcome the fact that I am relatively disinterested in the idea of an eating club to begin with.”

Chia, however, said that he is leaving Colonial even though he is “generally satisfied with [his] eating club experience right now.”

Song also said he enjoyed his year as a club member.

“I’ve met a lot of my good friends through Charter, and I think the social atmosphere is awesome, “ he explained. “The meals are consistently great, especially the special meals like pub nights and formals, and overall, I think my experience has been fulfilling.”

Looking ahead, Chia, Mody and Song all said they do not anticipate any major difficulties in transitioning to being independent.

Chia is currently on the waiting list to join Brown Co-op and said he will look to some of his independent friends for guidance during his transition.