Trayless system carries enormous merit

If you didn't already know, you're involuntarily a member of our university's Residence Hall Association if you live in any University of Nebraska-Lincoln housing facility.

Trust us. The RHA Web site says so, and that's a good thing because the residence hall government is trying to make financially responsible strides in enhancing living areas for students.

We fully support the group's latest effort to remove trays from most of our dining halls.

Some students tend to leave mounds of uneaten food on their trays when they visit the dining halls. Without trays, students would waste less food because they would have only a plate on which to place what they want to eat.

The conservation of food is not only an environmentally conscious endeavor, but it will also save UNL money. This ultimately could save students some dough as well.

Going trayless students will become more aware of how much food they're consuming, too.

We also commend RHA President Sammy Nabulsi and others in the organization, for extensively researching the benefits of trayless dining halls before taking action.

RHA has been working with Dining Services to ensure their decision has more pros than cons.

Of course, one con UNL students have brought up is the difficulty that comes with juggling plates without the help of a tray. But RHA has already taken steps to ensure the decision would go over well with students.

Representatives from RHA and Doug Zatechka, director of University Housing, traveled to University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kan. to examine their trayless dining system.

Now, they will research the amount of food wasted in UNL dining halls and organize a campaign to tell students about the upside to not using trays.

So if you're living in a UNL housing facility, be proud to be an RHA member.

We're excited to see what Nabulsi and his crew will do next.

Good luck.

staffed@dailynebraskan.com