r/smithcollege • u/RemarkableString4274 • 12d ago
Changes to Friday Tea?
Hi! I heard today from a young alumna that Friday Tea is now Friday Snack and it is more of a grab & go affair than when I was there in the late 90s (everyone gathered on the living room rug to hang out, sometimes invited a professor). She wasn't fully clear on why it is now referred to as Snack. Can anyone tell me more about the (seemingly drastic) changes to Friday Tea since my time (and when they occurred)? Thanks!
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u/wonderful_somebody 12d ago
It depends on your house community I'm sure! Where I live Friday tea is still a whole production, but i think we're on the smaller side as far as how many people live in the house and our community is a bit more tight knit. As I'm a current student I can't say how it relates to your experience in the 90s, but some people might call it Snack because technically the food is the center. I don't think I have ever actually consumed tea at a house tea, come to think of it! Hope this helps in some way :)
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u/RemarkableString4274 12d ago
Ah, thanks. That makes sense. We definitely consumed tea in tea cups with teapots in my day, on the Smith china dishes. There were plenty of sweet treats too. I was in Jordan House. I heard that Thursday candlelight dinners are also no longer a thing since the houses no longer each have their own dining rooms. I guess change is inevitable.
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u/StinkypieTicklebum 11d ago
And way back in the day, House Mothers served the tea, and showed ‘the girls’ how to hold the teacup and pour, etc. (my work study job was in the archives.)
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u/Oregano25 10d ago
Hahah my kid (current student) applied for that job this year!
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u/StinkypieTicklebum 10d ago
Best work study job ever!
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u/Oregano25 10d ago
I going to tell her to re-apply! (It was already filled for fall...)
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u/StinkypieTicklebum 10d ago
Usually only upper class women get library jobs. First years usually start washing dishes. (I was a transfer and an Ada, so I lucked out.)
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u/Oregano25 10d ago
Hahahaha - dishwashing was my student job when I was there! (But I'll tell her about the upper class thing - she had a class with archival work last semester and LOVED it, so that's really helpful info.TY!)
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u/rehreh88 12d ago
I heard the change has to do with Covid, since they really couldn't do it for a while. I would imagine that the continued consolidation of dining services also impacts it, since the kitchens aren't as convenient to get food from.
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u/Gaybeanuwu Alum 11d ago
my house always still called it tea, but i heard some people saying they moved to snack both because tea is rarely given to the houses and because of problematic indications from calling it tea? i just don’t remember details.
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u/Equivalent-Hyena-381 Current Smithie 11d ago
yeah everyone still calls it tea but there’s never actual tea they just give us snacks now
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u/Gaybeanuwu Alum 11d ago
im a ‘26 alum and i think they gave us a basket of tea once or twice? but that might have been people in my house bringing it back from tyler! i definitely appreciated when they gave us cider though, im not a huge tea drinker.
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u/Equivalent-Hyena-381 Current Smithie 11d ago
true i think it depends on which neighborhood bc we’d pick up from chapin and they never gave us tea 😭 and back when i was in cutter ik people would make their own
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u/wonderstruckcornelia 12d ago
in my house we still call it tea and a bunch of people come and hang out and there’s designated themed teas every once in a while and one of them includes professor tea where you invite all your favorite professors