I came to YLS expecting the school to provide all the
intellectual challenges and opportunities I could ever want.I was definitely not disappointed in the
least, but surprised when I found out that I would be getting more than just
food for thought.Beginning with the
first day of Orientation, the 1Ls have been inundated with food.For someone who eats on a constant basis,
it's been pretty amazing to have so many opportunities to get to learn
something about my peers and professors over nothing short of a free lunch (or
dinner, or breakfast, or everything in between).From grab bags at the YLS cafeteria for lunch
to "Carnival Day" where Dean Koh drew out names for free Yale merchandise,
the school has made sure that no 1L shall ever go hungry.
On a regular basis, we do pretty well with the law school
cafeteria, which is great for both lunch and a quick snack during class breaks.Just to bring everyone closer together, YLS
hosts a weekly happy hour where the Dean and faculty members mingle with all of
the law students over a constantly changing selection of finger foods and
beverages.It seems that every other day
there's a distinguished speaker coming or a discussion panel, while the many
student organizations also make sure that we almost always get a meal with the
show.Our free cuisine is often pizza
(keep in mind that we're in New Haven
and everyone swears by the pizza) but many events will advertise a
"non-pizza" dinner, which intrigued me.I learned quickly that "non-pizza
food" often means Thai or Indian (two staples of the New
Haven food scene), but the sheer number of free meals ensured that
I was able to sample something from just about every corner of New Haven.
I've been pretty impressed by how YLS makes every effort to
make sure we get to know each other outside the law school as well.Two of our Dean's Advisors banded together to
give us our first taste of Indian food in New Haven, and my corner of the table
had enough left over to avoid cooking for the rest of the week.Journal meetings are almost always
accompanied by snacks (from carrots and chips to salad and pizza) and are often
followed by social hours at students' apartments or at local restaurants.True to form, our professors have also been a
constant and never-ending source of dinners, barbecues, and light snacks.We've had small group barbecues at their
homes, gone on picnics at their farms, and stolen the odd Snickers from their
candy jars.Our Constitutional Law
professor passed a couple pies around class one day.Another invited all the members of the
Pacific Islander, Asian, and Native American Law Students Association (one of
several cultural groups on campus) to her home for dinner.After an hour of getting to know each other
over noodles and beef, we gathered in her living room for a Q&A session
where she answered questions ranging from which classes to take to where the
best tennis courts are.She didn't run
out of steam, stopping only to crack a joke or make sure her dog wasn't sneaking
into the food.It was just like going to
dinner at a friend's house–until we remembered that this was a world-famous,
best-selling author giving her evening (and home) to us.The best part?Nights like this aren't anything out of the
ordinary for students at a school that's always feeding us, both literally and
figuratively.
