Assumption University to open pub in spring
WORCESTER — Assumption University students got the green light at the last License Commission meeting to serve alcohol at a new pub on campus. The initiative was led entirely by students at Assumption.
Patrick Sedgwick, Class of 2023, was the chairperson of a committee of five students who collectively wrote the proposal for the pub that took the majority of the spring 2022 semester to complete.
The committee proposed and passed it through Assumption's Student Government Association in April 2022, and then members had conversations with the university's president, Greg Weiner.
"There wasn't a ton of spaces on campus where everyone could get together, hang out and wind down," Sedgwick said. "We figured a pub would be a welcoming area where everyone could be amongst friends."
The pub will be at the Hagan Campus Center in Hagan Hall. Staff will ID students and serve beer and wine Thursdays through Saturdays. The space will also serve as a lounge for students with a pool table, seating areas and games.
"(The students) have really done a marvelous job," Weiner said. "Our students take initiative and that's something we encourage. I always say what separates Assumption students from others is that they're gritty, they're determined and they undertake bold things and get them done."
The plan essentially converted what was a lecture hall to a place students could spend their free time. The Hagan Campus Center is already a central part of Assumption's campus, so the idea of opening a pub there made sense.
The pub's construction began in early September.
While the pub will serve as a gathering place for students, Sedgwick also thought it could serve as an event space for the college because it offers a stage for performances.
Molly Tempesta, a senior at Assumption and the Student Government Association's student president for two years, said the idea for an on-campus pub was in the works all four years of her time at the college.
Tempesta said the Student Government Association passed the proposal year after year, but it was never quite ready. Sedgwick and his committee went through the Student Government Association's archives and previous proposals, held open discussions during Student Government Association meetings and had ongoing conversations with Weiner.
Now the idea has become a reality.
"It's so exciting to see it come to fruition," Tempesta said. "It's definitely going to be a location where we can all gather and hang out as a community."
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Assumption University pub
