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GHC Floyd Campus cafeteria closes after years in the red

By Jake Carter
[email protected]
Staff Writer

The Floyd campus of GHC officially closed its cafeteria in December 2006.

�The state audit department allowed us to operate the cafeteria in the red so long as the other auxiliary units operated in the black as a whole,� stated Dr. Wilbur Shuler, vice president of finance and administration.

For years the cafeteria made a profit with the presence of both the nursing school and police academy on the campus.

�Unlike the other students, the police academy and nursing school students had very structured schedules and didn't have time to eat off-campus,� stated Dr. Randy Pierce, GHC president.

However, the nursing school was moved to Heritage Hall in December 1994. The Police Academy then moved to Forsyth in July 2000. With the loss of these students the cafeteria began to lose money.

�When we came up for a SACS (Southern Association of College and Schools) reaccreditation we needed an official state audit. They said that we needed to find a plan to put the cafeteria back into the black, which simply could not be done,� Shuler said.

As a result, the cafeteria was officially closed at the end of last semester. Shuler is currently handling proposals from outside businesses to replace the cafeteria. One possibility is that the area will be filled with snack machines from the Atlanta Food and Beverage Company.

The cafeteria closing, along with rumors of replacement plans, has sparked controversy among both the students and faculty.

Corbitt Lyons, a freshman business major, stated, �I think it's a bad thing that they have removed the cafeteria. It takes away our ability to eat healthful food while we're here.�

Dr. Jon Hershey, professor of English, and Susan Claxton, associate professor of human services, created a petition requesting the reconsideration of the cafeteria's closing.Multiple copies exist throughout the campus for students and faculty to sign.

It is still unclear what provider, if any, will fill in the gap left by the cafeteria.