Each semester, clubs on campus have the fundraising opportunity to sell food and treats at school.

Leading up to Club Food Day, many students eagerly plan the different items they will undoubtedly stack onto their lunch plates as they roam across campus from one food station to another.

In reality, Club Food Day has another side to it. It is not merely a time to enjoy food, but also a crucial opportunity for clubs to replenish their treasuries. Traditionally, the event takes place at the beginning of each semester, during the months of September and January. This year, Club Food Day has been postponed to March.

According to ASB vice president, Leon Chen, the change was because the leadership team thought it was a big hassle to put club promo and food day side by side. For the custodial staff, it’s much easier to have them in different times. Another reason is clubs, supposedly, don’t need as much money second semester anymore.

However, for many clubs that are running low on income, this change is highly problematic. Rather than being able to fundraise early on in the semester, these clubs will have to wait until March to raise their funds. It is true that for the larger organizations on campus, such as business and community service clubs, fundraising is not crucial during second semester, but this is merely because they do not need to make some $50-200 at Club Food Day when they already have over $1000 in their treasury. Smaller and younger clubs definitely need the early start to thrive and survive. For example, magazine clubs, La Pluma and Verdadera need the revenue from club day to sustain their goals of printing their own magazines periodically.

At the end of first semester, Leadership gave club officers and Legislative Council a chance to vote on their stance regarding the delay.

Senior Diane Chong voted to keep Club Food Day in January. She believes that one of the biggest pros about January is the timing; the money earned early on can be saved up and used throughout the entire semester.

As the president of Model United Nations, Chong hoped to fundraise for her club in January, as the club will have several conferences coming up this semester. She will need funds to book hotels, organize transportation and pay conference fees.

In short, the postponement of Club Food Day is not a considerate idea. Many clubs on campus heavily rely on this opportunity to raise their funds as they are preparing for numerous second semester activities, especially those that did not have the chance to sell food during first semester. Cornering these clubs into a situation of possibly running out of money is anti-productive.

Hopefully, in the future, Club Food Day can remain in its rightful time –– at the beginning of each semester.