A new sign in the Cornerstone Coffee House has become a striking cause for conversation among those in the student body. The notice, which hangs over the cashier counter, states the type of music that can be played and the volume level at which it can be heard.
“Dining Services received several complaints that the music being played in the eateries was so loud, the customers had a hard time interacting with the service staff. This was a reoccurring issue that affected customer service, so the short-term decision was to remove music from all dining areas until there was a suitable solution,” said Assistant Director of Dining Services Jim Cacciatore.
According to Cacciatore, switching to solely Christian music is Dining Services’ way of honoring God in the workplace. Though the music is solely Christian, it can be any genre (for example, rap, hymns, rock or hip hop) and is left up to the discretion of managers and supervisors. He feels that as a whole, the Dining Services management team sees this change as positive.
As a bridge between playing music without restrictions and playing no music, he sees this compromise as appropriate.
“The employees are happy to have music back in the workplace. The customers also like that we are once again playing music. It adds to the ambiance and enhances their overall experience,” Cacciatore said.
The coffee shop’s supervisor, Yui Enomori, explained that the decision to play only Christian music was from higher management.
“We can still play Christian music and instrumental [music], I mean, technically, the sign tells us that we have to play at a very low volume, but at least we can still have music,” he said.
Enomori went on to say that the coffee house was not the only campus facility affected by this change. The Cougar Den was required to stop playing music altogether.
Nabil Nazir, supervisor at the Cougar Den, explained that apart from complaints, several of the student workers were concerned about the changing of songs or stations in the kitchen, which distracted them from their jobs. He said they decided to stop playing music in order create a more efficient working environment where tasks would get done in a timely manner.
After receiving the news, some employees were not happy, including cashier and sophomore social work major Cciara Mosella.
“I don’t like this ‘no music’ rule. Seriously, it made the time go by faster when we were allowed to play music, and I feel it attracted more customers,” Mosella said.
Although music is not allowed during working hours, Nazir allows students to play their own tunes after closing.
A few steps away from the kitchen is the Paws ‘N’ Go, where this rule does not apply. Many of its employees were unaware of the change and said their boss had not mentioned anything about shutting off the music in the store.
Paws ‘N’ Go is allowed to play most music as long as it is neither explicit nor degrading, said junior business management major and Paws ‘N’ Go employee Reuben Lindsey.
“I agree with [the new rule],” Lindsey said. “I don’t think we should be playing anything that’s not going to glorify the Lord, and if we set an example for people who are visiting the school, we should at least have clean music.”
Due to the manager’s influence, Mexicali employees have similar rules in which only low-volume Christian music can be played.
This requirement also affects West Campus’ Hillside Grounds.
“I’ve noticed more people sitting with headphones and listening to their own music,” sophomore psychology major Gabby Giannovola said.
The Cougar Dome is not a part of the university’s Dining Services and frequently plays secular music. Jackson Harbolt, a sophomore accounting major who works at the front desk in the dome, explained that whoever is scheduled to work the front desk is allowed to play whatever music desired as long as it is appropriate.
“This new rule is kind of disappointing because even when you go to any kind of restaurant, music is just something that fills the silence and picks up the vibe in the room,” he said.
Harbolt said the upbeat, electric music he plays from his Pandora stations typically gets a positive response from students.
“I think people will still listen to secular music anyways, regardless of where they listen to it, so I could definitely see this making people upset on both ends,” freshman applied exercise science major Sara Hernandez said.