Henry Gamble, News Editor—
On March 1st, 2023, Denison students received notification of meal plan and housing cost changes for the 2023/4 academic year. This included a flat rate of $7,700 per semester for every student, regardless of housing type or meal plan selection.
In sharp contrast to previous meal plan options, the updated plans included required meal plans tiered by class year. First year students now abide by a plan which offers 21 “meal swipes” per week, with the inclusion of $150 flex dollars, only $50 of which can be spent off-campus at participating locations.
Sophomores and Juniors are now part of the same meal plan, which offers 15 “meal swipes” per week, of which seven can be used as “meal exchange swipes” at dining options such as Slayter, the Nest, or Slivy’s, which otherwise require flex dollar payments. In addition to these swipes, sophomores and juniors are granted $835 flex dollars to be used at participating locations on campus, $100 of which can be used at off-campus locations.
Finally Seniors are granted a seemingly luxurious plan which is composed of only flex dollars, $3,000, of which $1,000 can be spent at off campus locations.
While I’m sure many students have been made aware of these updated plans, I find that many are unsure of the specifics of their plan, or even unaware that these tiered plans exist.
These changes weren’t solely based on financial incentives for Denison, they are the result of a policy update by the Department of Education which now mandates the availability of at least 21 meals a week to university students nationwide in order to combat food insecurity.
While these new meal plans allow Denison to meet this criterion, many students, especially those returning, feel they have been forced to adopt vastly different plans and have had their dining autonomy stripped from them. Of course, meeting a government-set standard is obligatory and food insecurity is a serious problem, especially at institutions of higher learning, but in no way was Denison mandated to create this strange, class-based, ranked system.
Some students I spoke to felt the plans had the opposite effect than intended. Brianna Gonzalez, ‘26, a student athlete at Denison, explained that Slayter is the only option open after practice has ended at night. Because she is only granted seven “ exchange swipes,” meal swipes which can be used at alternate dining options than cafeterias, a week, she sometimes skips lunch or breakfast to conserve them.
Mia Hennum, ‘26, emphasized a similar issue, noting that the restrictions on dining hall hours, and therefore food options, seem to constrain students and certainly do not work against food insecurity.
First year students new to Denison are certainly unaware of the previous dining system, which, while flawed, was much more egalitarian.
Instead of a system based on class year designation, prior plans were simply varied; ranging from the “Big Red” plan, which gave students unlimited swipes at both Curtis and Huffman, to the popular “The Hill” plan, which granted students 17 meals worth of “declining” per week, a term which has unfortunately been laid to rest and replaced by the vaguely corporate “flex dollar.”
The most drastic change to student meal plan opinions is the lack of lower tired, or less expensive, plans. The “1831” plan as well as the “Reserve” plan, which both allocated around 12 meals worth of “declining” a week at all campus dining options. In fact, Denison seniors weren’t even required to possess a plan because senior apartments come equipped with their own kitchens.
Some Denison seniors I spoke with shared a discontent with these imposed plans. Grace Prisby, ‘24, noted that, while she is able to spend a third of her meal plan at off campus locations, local grocery locations, such as IGA, are not cheap by any standard, especially when compared to more affordable locations, such as Aldi or Kroger, which are only accessible by car
Denison has always tiered it’s amenities, such as housing or class preference, and now they have added meal plans to the list. In an obvious attempt to diminish traffic to popular locations, such as Slayter or Slivy’s, the freshman class has been practically barred from choosing these options because their “meal swipes” are only valid at Curtis and Huffman.
There is a reason behind high traffic at certain locations. Slayter is fast, reliable, and predictable, while Huffman and Curtis often present mediocre options, rotating menus, and restricting hours.
To combat these notions, there were promises made to improve quality and diversity of options at both Curtis and Huffman. However, the changes have been minimal at best. Priyanshi Kanoria,’24, remarked that the promised improvements to Curtis, such as more vegetarian options, and Slivvy’s, such as a wider variety of grocery items, were not acted upon in any capacity.
In writing this piece, I asked students to reach out to me on social media with ideas and received many proposals for improvement. Madeline Borger, ‘24, suggested a wider range of options for meal swipe use, such as Slayter sushi and takeaway options as well as drinks and items from campus coffee shop, Common Grounds.
I would suggest that Denison’s administration do the same – search for genuine perspectives from students interested in improving quality of life on campus. While there are a variety of dining committees and groups that have compiled reports and proposals, it seems that Denison’s administration has a long way to go before they create an equitable, affordable, and easily-available meal plan.
Henry Gamble ‘24 is a politics and public affairs major from Wooster, OH.