Meal plan change in works
Proposal would allow limited choice between dining hall, AJ's, or Jitters
Whitney A. Stewart
Issue date: 4/3/08 Section: News
"I think the biggest challenge is to create something that the students like and is also affordable," she said.
President Larry Arnn maintained a wait-and-see attitude last week. He hasn't seen the proposed changes, but he said he has been "friendly to the idea of making changes" to the meal plans in the past.
But, he said, money presents a significant hurdle.
"If you spend more money to get more flexibility, somebody is going to pay the cost," Arnn said.
With the issue of affordability in mind, the committee called numerous colleges around the country to compare meal plans.
They also surveyed Hillsdale students to gauge food and plan preferences. While 85 percent of respondents said they typically don't replace meals they skip by going to AJ's or Jitters, 67 percent said they would skip more meals in the dining hall and go to the café or coffee cart if they could receive at least a partial refund for the skipped meal.
Saga General Manager Kevin Kirwan said he faces certain fixed costs which any new meal plan must consider. For instance, labor makes up a significant portion of Saga's budget, he said, and wouldn't necessarily change proportionately to a change in the flow of meal attendance by students.
"The perception is, if I give up more meals, I'll get more money back," he said.
But though someone might eat fewer meals in the dining hall, costs remain for such things labor and equipment maintenance, he said.
"The missed meal is not going to be pound for pound," he said. "It's not a one for one situation, because your dollar is split up in many ways. The only thing that will change in theory is your food cost."
Kreinbihl said though the small size of Hillsdale presents restrictions on how much flexibility a meal plan can offer, he felt confident that the committee could find a compromise solution amenable to both Saga and students.
"Anything that's good for the students is going to be good for Saga, too, because they're there to serve the students," he said. "Our solution has been to suggest creating inner competition within Saga. We're hoping that by giving students more options, instead of being locked into eating in Saga, there will be competition Since you can eat in Jitters and AJ's, in essence, those three are competing for your business. It's more flexible, it's more free market, as much as you can on a meal plan."
Student Federation now waits to receive feedback from administrators, but Philipp praised the work of the food committee.
"I'm really, really pleased with how the students have handled this committee," Philipp said. "They've asked a lot of questions and done a thorough job of working with Saga and looking at what the considerations would have to be to make it workable for them and also at what students want."
President Larry Arnn maintained a wait-and-see attitude last week. He hasn't seen the proposed changes, but he said he has been "friendly to the idea of making changes" to the meal plans in the past.
But, he said, money presents a significant hurdle.
"If you spend more money to get more flexibility, somebody is going to pay the cost," Arnn said.
With the issue of affordability in mind, the committee called numerous colleges around the country to compare meal plans.
They also surveyed Hillsdale students to gauge food and plan preferences. While 85 percent of respondents said they typically don't replace meals they skip by going to AJ's or Jitters, 67 percent said they would skip more meals in the dining hall and go to the café or coffee cart if they could receive at least a partial refund for the skipped meal.
Saga General Manager Kevin Kirwan said he faces certain fixed costs which any new meal plan must consider. For instance, labor makes up a significant portion of Saga's budget, he said, and wouldn't necessarily change proportionately to a change in the flow of meal attendance by students.
"The perception is, if I give up more meals, I'll get more money back," he said.
But though someone might eat fewer meals in the dining hall, costs remain for such things labor and equipment maintenance, he said.
"The missed meal is not going to be pound for pound," he said. "It's not a one for one situation, because your dollar is split up in many ways. The only thing that will change in theory is your food cost."
Kreinbihl said though the small size of Hillsdale presents restrictions on how much flexibility a meal plan can offer, he felt confident that the committee could find a compromise solution amenable to both Saga and students.
"Anything that's good for the students is going to be good for Saga, too, because they're there to serve the students," he said. "Our solution has been to suggest creating inner competition within Saga. We're hoping that by giving students more options, instead of being locked into eating in Saga, there will be competition Since you can eat in Jitters and AJ's, in essence, those three are competing for your business. It's more flexible, it's more free market, as much as you can on a meal plan."
Student Federation now waits to receive feedback from administrators, but Philipp praised the work of the food committee.
"I'm really, really pleased with how the students have handled this committee," Philipp said. "They've asked a lot of questions and done a thorough job of working with Saga and looking at what the considerations would have to be to make it workable for them and also at what students want."
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