The firing on Tuesday of much-liked Dining Services employee Mitzi Nalette prompted a wave of protest from outraged students, but a student boycott of Food Court planned for Friday nonetheless failed to take place.
BlitzMail messages circulating widely among students Tuesday night had called for a mass boycott and accompanying protest to show support for Nalette, a well-known figure at Food Court whom many students had befriended. But disagreements about the effectiveness of such a boycott and failed communication among organizers precluded organized action.
Few students showed up for lunch in Food Court on Friday, according to Dining Services employees, but by dinnertime, attendance was back to normal. Dining Services employees speculated that a series of free food events planned for the First Year Family Weekend may have contributed to the low lunchtime turnout.
Jenna Pelletier '06 was among the first students to express her support for Nalette on Tuesday, hours after the cashier was fired.
"I am not ready to let her go ... she is someone that often makes my day better, even helped me get rid of a cold," Pelletier said in a BlitzMail message to other students Tuesday night.
In her message, Pelletier advocated a campus-wide effort to protest Nalette's dismissal by boycotting Food Court on Friday. She also encouraged a demonstration at Food Court.
But other students questioned the effectiveness of such action.
"People thought it might be detrimental to her efforts to get her job back," Student Body President Janos Marton '04 said.
Marton urged Pelletier to hold off on organizing the boycott until he had consulted Nalette. He met with Dining Services director David Newlove on Thursday morning to express what he characterized as students widespread opposition to Nalette's dismissal. Marton also contacted Nalette later that day to seek her opinion about a possible protest. Nalette said she was unable to respond to Marton's message in time.
When Marton failed to get back to her about the protest, Pelletier abandoned plans for an organized demonstration. She said she did not eat at Food Court on Friday -- but neither did she participate in an on-site demonstration.
Dining Services employee Joska Reid said he did not see any students holding banners or signs to protest Nalette's dismissal.
Nalette said she was touched when she found out that students were planning on boycotting Food Court to protest her dismissal.
"It's a very nice gesture," she said, "not that I wanted to cause any problem for the College."
Nalette said that she did not know what actually happened on Friday and whether students actually carried out the plan.
Following her official dismissal on Tuesday, Nalette has visited campus twice to speak to Michelle Meyers from the Office of Institutional Diversity and Equity as well as to discuss the appeal process with Earl Sweet, Service Employees International Union Local 560 President. Sweet is expected to file the grievance on Nalette's behalf on Monday.
The appeal process consists of six different levels, and it might take months before the situation is resolved, Nalette said.
Nalette was fired unexpectedly on Tuesday, April 27th because of excessive absences, which Nalette has attributed to health problems. The administration has refused to comment on the case, citing the obligation to keep any information related to personnel confidential.
Dining Services Director David Newlove and Manager Lawrence James could not be reached for comment this weekend.
