Waffleopolis connects Mavericks, one line at a time
Long before lines of students stretched the length of the University Center Mall Wednesday, Waffleopolis, one of UTA’s most distinctive Maverick Stampede welcome week traditions, was already taking shape.
Tables, six seats apiece, filled Brazos Park, dressed in blue and orange balloons and tablecloths. Five serving stations stood ready, where 3,500 waffles would eventually be served and topped with maple syrup, chocolate syrup, butter, strawberries, whipped cream, sprinkles and, perhaps most importantly, ice cream.
A group of students showed up early, lingering around Brazos while keeping one eye on the serving stations, ready to make their move the moment the lines began to form.
Freshmen Avery Miller, Ali Mullins and Aurora Elliot had already claimed a table before a single waffle was served. Then the waiting ended.
“Oh my God, the line is starting,” Mullins said.
By 7:50 p.m., lines stretched hundreds of students deep as Mavericks passed the time talking and meeting one another.
For Quintin Lane, the lines are the whole point. As Assistant Director for Housing and Residence Life and one of the event’s organizers, Lane has coordinated Waffleopolis since planning began in June for a tradition now in its 29th year.
The waffles, he said, are the means, not the point.
"It really allows students to jumpstart their engagement with each other, with the campus community,” Lane said. “Hopefully, they’re able to connect with at least one person while they’re out here.”
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For Badrinath Dalvai, a junior computer engineering major, that’s exactly what happened.
Dalvai stumbled onto his first Waffleopolis by accident, walking alone from class to his residence hall when he noticed the crowd. He got in line, started talking to fellow Mavericks, and made friends he’s still in touch with today.
“We started to converse and build a rapport,” Dalvai said. “And that’s literally how I met my friends. I’m still in contact with three of them right now.”
Now a resident assistant heading into his third Waffleopolis, Dalvai has gone from stumbling into the event to pointing his own residents toward it.
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Elsewhere in line, new connections were forming in real time. Senior Hannah Hudgans, sophomore Brittney Patlin and junior Leslie Zacharias ended up chatting at the front of the same station, though not all of them arrived together.
“Me and Brittney met before, but we just met Hannah in line,” Zacharias said.
As a freshman, Hudgans waited in a Waffleopolis line with friends she had met through Maverick Adventure Camp. Those friends have since graduated. She graduates this year.
“This is a really good opportunity for the off-campus Mavericks and transfer students as well,” Hudgans said. “Because not everybody starts here as a freshman.”
Freshman Victoria Prado’s biggest takeaway from Waffleopolis was more practical. She mistook butter for whipped cream and slathered it across her waffle before a friend caught her.
“I’m not feeling too well because I had a lot of butter,” Prado said.
A second waffle was out of the question.
“I’ve already done too much damage,” she said, laughing.
By 9 p.m., waffles were still being served, students were still showing up, and square dancing had broken out on the lawn.
Across the park, Tyler Albers, Maverick Dining’s executive chef, was finally catching his breath. Securing enough waffles had taken about two months of work with suppliers, and much of his catering crew had been working since 4 a.m.
“I love it. I love it. I’ve been running all day, and it’s funny because the event’s going now, and now I can breathe,” Albers said. “I can change my jacket and just kind of come out here and see some smiling faces. I mean, it’s just great to be a part of the students.”
— Written by Dylan Stewart
About The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA)
The University of Texas at Arlington is a growing public research university in the heart of Dallas-Fort Worth. With a student body of over 42,700, UTA is the second-largest institution in the University of Texas System, offering more than 180 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Recognized as a Carnegie R-1 university, UTA stands among the nation’s top 5% of institutions for research activity. UTA and its 300,000 alumni generate an annual economic impact of $28.8 billion for the state. The University has received the Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation from the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities and has earned recognition for its focus on student access and success, considered key drivers to economic growth and social progress for North Texas and beyond.