Dining Changes Offer New Options, Reset Routines

BY ALTHEA PERLEY
and JAKE STANLEY
Miami University journalism students

Changes meant to improve dining options for Miami University students produced new dining options, but also led to hungry students and angry parents.

A new dining plan aimed to save students money, create more buffet options and shorten dining hours combined to create long lines and wait times at the school's dining halls more than a month into the fall semester.

The feedback has forced dining and student government leaders to make systemic changes that they hope will benefit students.

The new 'Diplomat'

Prior to their return to campus in August, students were made aware of differences regarding their dining options, specifically an overhaul of Miami’s Diplomat dining service.

The impetus for the changes was the adoption of a new meal plan in the spring. The plan was created in order to remove the $1,625 meal plan fee for students, as well as the Diplomat discount system that did not offer savings equal to the large fee. Without the fee and discounts, Dining Services said it expects students to save money in comparison to previous years.

Dining Services announced the initial version of the plan in February, highlighted by a buffet swipe system and accounts holding various amounts of declining balance. An increase in buffet options was the main suggestion provided by students in a dining survey conducted last fall. The proposed plan was met with student criticism over the prevalence of buffet choices, leading to a petition and a reform plan proposal by Associated Student Government (ASG) on March 1.

The reform plan was instituted at the beginning of this school year, offering three levels of buffet and declining balance amounts.

New choices

Beyond the revised Diplomat system, students discovered a number of major revamps in the cuisines offered at dining locations.

Red Brick Pizza, a location at the Maplestreet Station complex, gave way to The Q, a barbecue location. The change occurred following a name change request by a California-based company also named Red Brick Pizza.

Serrano, which had been the lowest-performing location at the Armstrong Student Center, was replaced by Miami Traditions, focusing on healthy, home-style meals including baked chicken, salmon and pork loin.

“We recognized that this would be a great addition to our lineup at Armstrong and we made a change,” said Geno Svec, the university’s senior director of food and beverage.

According to Svec, he has heard “nothing but good things” from students about the culinary changes.

More buffets

The move to the swipe system led to an increase in buffet options for students, fulfilled by the re-opening of Martin Dining Hall on North Quad, as well of the modification of Maplestreet’s Pacific Rim into an all-you-can-eat location.

Most notably, Bell Tower Place was changed from an a la carte to a buffet location, creating a choice for students outside the residence hall areas.

“There was a lack of a centralized buffet on campus,” said James Oaks, the ASG secretary for on-campus affairs. “It’s a pretty centralized location. They thought it would work out.”

“Our goal is to ensure the buffets are available to students when they need them,” added Svec. “Changing Bell Tower to a buffet was an added benefit for the students who need a place to use their meal plan.”

Bell Tower also mostly discontinued the practice of to-go ordering, outside of a sandwich market and Starbucks location. A large section of the building was cordoned for faculty members in an effort to provide “a convenient, quiet on-campus dining experience.”

Oaks said that he and other ASG members immediately began hearing from students about their dissatisfaction with the changes, especially the inability to take out food. Common complaints among students were that they were not getting adequate food for the buffet cost and were unable to get their food in a quick time span.

“It’s pretty clear the way it was worked better,” said Oaks. “A la carte is the only way that place works. Miami students live an on-the-go lifestyle. We eat less more often, so even if I go into the buffet, I usually just take one thing.”

Working off an earlier draft, Oaks and Amy Berg, secretary for communications and media relations, crafted an official petition asking for dining services to consider changing the location back to its old form.

Since its publication on Sept. 28, the petition received over 1,000 supporters through one post on both Facebook and Twitter.

The petition stated that the elimination of to-go options disallowed students from quickly finding a meal in their free time. It also maintained that students felt that the value of their meal plans were not being provided.

The petition was delivered to the first meeting of the Administrative Dining Committee on Sept. 29. The nine-person panel, which includes representatives from dining, residence life, recreation and finance, will meet monthly, although Oaks said that the members are in “constant communication.”

Where is the Food?

Students adapting to the new hours and buffets created a pair of rush hour periods at lunch and dinner. Two dining halls in particular, Garden Commons on the eastern quad and Western Dining Commons on the Western campus, were heavily affected by crowds. The influx led to a lack of seats and surprising shortages of food following payment and long lines.

“Miami has a shortage of food and a shortage of forks,” said freshman Hanna Blackwell. “Harris (Dining Center, located on the southern quad) always runs out of food.”

Reports like Blackwell’s have permeated social media, leaving a long list of disgruntled students and parents on official Miami Facebook pages. The majority of messages seek explanations for the lines, shortages and hours of operation.

“There are only buffet locations at the center of campus open during the day and they are overflowing,” wrote junior Amanda Lourenco. “[Students] are left without simple items like grilled chicken, etc. I don’t think they forecasted correctly for the impact that the new meal plan would have on the faculty and food.”

According to Dining Services, the issues have been due to struggles in getting the food out quickly enough to meet demand.

“The greatest effect has been the increase in meals that we have to produce daily,” explained Svec. “With the new plans, we have seen the dining halls busier than they have ever been in the past. Because of the additional meals we have been making, at times we have run into a gap in service where we may not have the food out on the line, however more food was being produced.”

Following ASG suggestions, Dining Services elected to increase weekend operation hours at three campus buffets, as well as reduce the price of dinner buffets on weekends from $12.95 to the lunch price of $9.95.

During the week, buffets, including Bell Tower Place, expanded their hours throughout the day in order to alleviate rush hour crowds. Finally, they instituted a bonus program in hope of adding more student workers.

Oaks believes that dining services will continue to seek feedback from students about the dining changes. He expects the committee will be success, building upon an already strong partnership between Dining Services and the Miami community.