Students returned to campus this fall to find that their meal plans had been refreshed and simplified - all in an effort to make the system easier to understand and more accommodating to the college lifestyle.
Under the previous meal zone system, students had to use their credits during specific hours of the day. The simplified program is based on two simple restrictions - up to three credits can be used anytime in a day, but only one credit can be used at a time.
"I think people expected (the plan) to be more complicated, but it is much more straightforward," said Director of Dining Services Gretchen Willis.
In addition to simplifying a convoluted system, the goal of the changes is to make the meal plan more flexible for students. "We have gotten feedback over time that the (meal zone system) was difficult," Willis said.
Under the old plan, students who skipped breakfast would not be able to eat until the next meal zone, but now students can use that credit for a snack between lunch and dinner or for a midnight bite at Josiah's or the Gate.
Giving students so much flexibility is uncharted territory for BuDS.
"When you have a meal plan structure like the one that we have had, you can really plan very well," Willis said. "Now we really don't know what is going to happen." But Willis said she expects that the "behind-the-house operations should be transparent to students."
Nonetheless, some students have noted lengthy lines at peak periods at the Sharpe Refectory and Verney-Woolley Dining Hall. Willis said that BuDS is monitoring the situation, but lines usually lessen during the semester as students' routines diversify. Even though student dining patterns do not usually settle into a routine until early October, the meal plan revamp initially appears to be a success, Willis said.
"There (are) a lot more meals being eaten, which I think is a good thing. That means to me that the decision to make the meal plan more flexible is working for students because we are making it easier for them to eat," she said.
Two hundred more students have signed up for a meal plan this year than last year.
More meals consumed means that fewer credits are being wasted - possibly affecting BuDS' bottom line. "We are watching," Willis said. She noted that other changes, like new retail items and the sustainable food initiative, are more likely to affect BuDS' cost structure than the refreshed meal plan.
BuDS has the challenge of accommodating a student body with an around-the-clock lifestyle. Because of traditionally low breakfast counts, BuDS has considered opening dining facilities later, Willis said, but a strong contingent of breakfast eaters has kept the opening hour for the Ratty and V-Dub at 7:30 a.m.
Similarly, the late-night retail facilities, Jo's and the Gate, are now open until 2 a.m. - an hour later than in previous years. The expanded schedule is intended to make BuDS facilities more accessible to students with varying schedules, Willis said.
According to Willis, the decision to extend late-night hours was an easy one. "A relatively small change for us has a ripple effect on how students manage their time," she said.
Student reaction to the updated meal program has been positive. "It is nice to be able to get a meal whenever I need to," said Amelia Rosenman '08.
Ashley Goodrich '05 upgraded her meal plan from 14 weekly credits to 20 in part because of the increased flexibility the changes give her. "I like the idea of being able to get more food later in the evening."
The positive student response justifies the changes for Willis. "I'm so glad we did it," she said.
