by Staff Writer Madison Lawson
Eastern New Mexico University held their annual Etiquette Dinner in the CUB Ballroom on March 29.
Every year ENMU provides an opportunity for students to practice their table manners and have experience with a table host.
As usual, this event was designed to be a mock meal at a high class restaurant, similar to one where you might be meeting a future employer for a job interview. This event gives students an opportunity to experience and prepare for the type of formal interaction that they may soon be encountering after graduating college. It also encourages students to begin building a more formal wardrobe, which was be used in future professional or formal situations.
The host is a faculty member at ENMU who has experience with interviews over a dinner setting. This event is planned from beginning to end with specific questions for certain classifications and with instructions on how to properly eat in a business setting.
I sat at table four with host Betsy Chaves. She is part of the retention department and tutoring and supplemental instructions department. She asked our table questions about our major and what we planned to do for our field of work.
Every movement of the dinner was instructed. We shook hands at a specific time and then had a set time to eat our appetizer and main course. We were instructed to take small bites of every meal so we could continue to have conversations. Chaves was very understanding of our confusion and mistakes. She educated us on what we were doing wrong and how to fix our habits that may be considered bad etiquette.
The event was overall a great learning experience for anyone who does not know proper dining etiquette. The faculty that dedicated their time to this event truly seemed to want students to feel comfortable while learning proper etiquette that will prepare them for the future.