This total refers to "purchases being made on a purchase card," said Alan Norton, vice-president and treasurer of the college. He explained that groups such as students organizations, residence hall councils and academic departments have such purchase cards, which they use when planning meetings and parties, among other things.

Norton said that he thought the majority of such purchases made by groups were probably student-based. "It seemed to make sense," he said.

With this idea in mind, the Pause executive board is currently trying to boost its own revenue, and bring students back into the Pause. Pause Co-Executive Andrew Billing ’04 said that their main reason for this decision is to help with the school’s financial situation.

"We wanted to find a way to keep money on campus," Billing said. "We want to get into that market, and help the school with its money problems."

Billings said that they are creating a brochure that will be distributed to all student organizations and departments on campus, "so that they know what we have to offer." He also added that there might be a discount for departmental orders, which would be another incentive to choose the Pause.

"We can handle their order, and we want to let them know that," Pause Co-Executive Jill Zaspel ’04 said.

Zaspel explained that if the Pause can generate a larger profit, then it will not require as much funding from the Student Government Association budget, thus alleviating some of the stress on the college budget.

"We want to keep money in the school, as opposed to off-campus vendors," Zaspel said. "We’re here for the students, and they should make use of that."

Administrators agree with this reasoning as well.

"In the context of looking at how the college spends it money, this is one way that we could be more careful or prudent," Norton said. "This is one place where students can help more than any administrator."

In comparison with Dominos, the Pause staff is adamant about their pizza.

"Our pizza is cheaper, tastier and made with fresher ingredients," Zaspel said. "And it is made by your peers."

Pause pizza is priced at $6.00 for a small, $7.00 for a medium and $8.00 for a large. In comparison, Dominos pizza is $7.70 for a small, $10.10 for a medium and $13.05 for a large, said Bob Richards, the store manager of Dominos Pizza in Northfield.

"Why would we give money to Dominos, when we could keep the money on campus?" Billing said.

In September of this year, departments and student organizations ordered 36 large pizzas from the Pause, totaling approximately $300, according to Nick Grey ‘05, financial manager of the Pause.

During the fiscal year 2003, departmental charges to the Pause amounted to $5,047.25, according to Carlson.

In addition to pizza sales, Billing said that the Pause has begun renting out its space, provided that St. Olaf students do not need it, to off-campus organizations to bring in more revenue. Groups such as the Target Corporation and various organizations in Northfield have already begun to take advantage of this opportunity, Zaspel said.

In terms of individual student usage, it has been shown that students more frequently make use of Dominos than the Pause.

On any given weekend Dominos does "roughly a couple thousand dollars worth of business with St. Olaf," said Richards. He said that there are about 150 deliveries of pizzas to St. Olaf each weekend. In comparison, last week the Pause sold 118 large pizzas, totaling approximately $1,000, according to Grey.

Students have numerous different opinions for why they prefer to order their late-night dinner from either Dominos or the Pause.

Those who prefer Dominos pizza often do so because of the variety it offers.

"Dominos has cinn-a-sticks and cheesy bread...and much more variety," Anna Swanson ’04 said.

Another reason students have for ordering Dominos pizza is the plentiful toppings.

"Dominos puts more pineapple on their pizza. They’re more generous," Sarah Larson ’04 said.

Meanwhile, supporters of the Pause hail it for its service.

"I like Pause pizza because it has prompt delivery, and it gets here faster," Melissa Hugo ’06 said.

Other Pause loyalists enjoy it for its pricing.

"The Pause is less expensive. You get more bang for your buck," Lindsay Boutilier ’04 said.

Some students believe that the Pause pizza is a more practical deal.

"The Pause is cheaper, closer and it takes less time to deliver," Ross Nielsen ’06 said.

Whatever the reasons students choose for purchasing pizza from Dominos or from the Pause, there is one reason with which not many students, no matter what their pizza orientation, can argue.

Bryan Stevenson ’06 said, "I like Pause pizza because it looks like the pizza that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles eat. If you compare Pause pizza with Dominos pizza, they are identical."

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