By Victor Dixon, Staff Writer
Newman students can get free hot drinks in the Student Activities Center, but members of the Student Government Association requests that they use the space responsibly.
The Jet Refuel Station has been a fixture for students since the spring semester of 2021, when it was created by the Student Government Association in response to the closure of the Scooter’s coffee shop. Scooter’s operated where Sacred Grounds is now from 2010 until 2018. The Jet Refuel Station is in the Student Life Center.
“The idea and purpose is just to give free coffee to students who need it,” SGA President Nathan Galicia said.
The station previously offered two Keurigs, a variety of Keurig coffee pods, creamer pods, sweetener packets and flavored syrups.
There was some debate in this year’s SGA meetings over the cost of the station, and the group’s executives and senators were seeking a solution.
“We knew it was being used a lot, and instead of it being something we could sustainably do, we were losing money in a very fast way, and it wasn’t really fair to anyone that we wouldn’t be able to sustain the JRS,” Galicia said.
There were also concerns about the cleanliness and fair use of the JRS, and SGA is now requesting students to be considerate of others using the station.
“I made a sign for people to be considerate, not to take things, also to clean up after themselves,” Senator Kenzee Keeling said.
SGA sent out a survey on Feb 25 that was aimed at gatherering student opinions about how the JRS could be improved.
“The survey was kind of asking like, ‘How often do you use it? Would it affect you if it got taken away? Do you like it? And stuff like that,’” Keeling said. “Also, ‘What would you like to see from the JRS?’”
The station has recently changed its coffee pods out and now offers hot cocoa Keurig pods as well, which were requested by students who responded to SGA’s survey.
“A good percentage of the feedback was they wanted hot chocolate,” Keeling said. “A lot of people, instead of the flavored coffee pods, they wanted just plain coffee pods.”
One of SGA’s recent restocks also included Hanks brand coffee pods.
“Some of the proceeds from the Tom Hanks company go toward veterans as well, so even though we’re buying it for the students, we’re also donating money to charity at the same time,” Galicia said.
To save money, SGA has replaced the creamer pods with a pump bottle of creamer.
SGA members also noticed that their supplies were getting heavy use during Jet Friday, when there is coffee and creamer provided by Great Western Dining.
“We would lose a lot of creamer during that time,” Galicia said. “Every Friday from 8 to around 10 or 11 (a.m.), the JRS will be closed down, and we’ll move products away. That way, people aren’t using our creamer and using everything whenever there’s already stuff out there.”
SGA also moved its recommendation box next to the JRS, and students can submit feedback there.
PHOTO: Dannicka McGrath, Photo Editor
