Grace Lukens, Special to The Denisonian–
Bleary-eyed students entered Barney-Davis a little earlier than usual on Thursdays this semester, all for the promise of a fresh baked good awaiting them before their morning class.
“Breakfast in Barney” is a weekly event hosted by the Sustainability and Environmental Studies (SES) Department which provides students with coffee and breakfast once a week. The Environmental Studies Fellows host the event, and provide a fresh breakfast for students, usually donuts, bagels, or pastries.
Brenda Franks, the Academic Administrative Assistant (AAA) for the department, said the program has been happening for approximately seven years.
“It started as ‘How can we build community amongst the Environmental Studies majors and minors?’”
“We always picked a day each semester based upon when we have the most foot traffic in this building of Environmental Studies students,” said Franks. She quickly added, “But we’re open to anyone in the building! We don’t turn you away at the door.”
The department originally collaborated with a local bakery that would deliver trays of pastries. However, now that the bakery has moved away from Granville, the Fellows are responsible for seeking out the breakfast for the week. The fellows get breakfast from establishments such as Village Coffee, Ross Market or Jolly Pirate Donuts.
Additionally, the breakfast aims to stay low-waste.
“We try not to use a lot of paper products,” said Franks. “We have mugs in our kitchen that we bring out for the coffee and drinks. It isn’t like we’re coming in with a lot of plastic products. It is all usually something recyclable.”
Often, some or all of the Environmental Studies fellows will sit in on the breakfast, chatting with peers and answering questions for any prospective SES majors or minors. This year, there are five fellows: Cailey Johns ‘25, Amelia Morris ‘25, Marco Vigilante ‘25, Nico Thompson ‘25, and Caro Crowder ‘25.
For the fellows, “Breakfast in Barney” is also about meeting their peers. “Taking time to talk to them, ask about their day, and if they have any questions for us we’re happy to answer them. It’s just kind of to meet people within the major and people who stop in,” Johns said.
All of the fellows agreed with Franks that community building was the key aspect of the program.
“I feel like it definitely goes with that sense of community because we are an interdisciplinary program, so there’s a lot of people taking a wide range of classes,” said Vigilante. “So this is one of the few opportunities that anyone taking a class can come and hang out.”
When asked what they pictured the breakfast being in the future, Franks and the Fellows agreed that it is perfect just the way it is.
“We don’t really want it to get bigger than life because it really is just a once-a-week, community building thing.” said Franks. Vigilante only adds that they hope to “get it out there more, so more of the Environmental Studies majors know, especially the sophomores and first-years. Most of the audience right now is the seniors and juniors that have class at 8:30 a.m. in this building.”
So if the warm smell of baked goods hits you as you pass by Barney-Davis on a Thursday morning, don’t hesitate to drop in and chat with the welcoming Sustainability and Environmental Studies community over a warm coffee and a pastry.