 |
Jerry Dean, director of strategic development at Aramark,
presents their proposal at the forum. Very few students were
in attendance. (Photo by Julia Weis)
|
Trinity may soon have Steak ‘n Shake, Starbucks, and food trucks on campus, as proposed by Aramark.
On Tuesday, Trinity University announced awarding the new dining services contract to Aramark, which has provided dining services to Trinity since 1984.
The following day, Aramark held a campus wide forum to provide more details of their proposal.
According to Aramark, several new services will come to Trinity. Steak ‘n Shake will replace Grille Works in Mabee, and will be open until 2 a.m. rather than midnight. Mabee Dining Hall will be rebranded as “The Tower,” and will feature fresh, new uniforms for the staff and a section called “Rooted: Vegan Cuisine,” with an emphasis on healthy food.
On the rest of campus, food trucks will be available, called “On the Fly,” offering various snacks and other foods with a focus on sustainability. One of the options is the “Tiger Press Juice Bar,” offering fresh juice.
In the Center for Sciences and Innovations, a sandwich shop will replace the Provisions on Demand (P.O.D.). In Coates Library, EcoGrounds cafe will be replaced by Starbucks.
A series of other changes were also proposed. Meal swipes will be valued at $6.50, cheaper than current pricing, and reusable takeout boxes will be available. Mabee will also have a service called “Batch 101,” offering cooking lessons including vegetarian, vegan, and allergy-free options.
Although the meal swipes will cost less than current meal swipes, the entire meal plan cost will increase 2.5% next year, per Trinity's Board of Trustees decision. This is not due to the new Aramark proposal, but reflective of the tuition and meal plan inflation every year.
Aramark received the contract as the result of an extensive Request for Proposal process, where Aramark competed with other nationally-recognized food service providers in higher education. “Of the three vendors selected to participate in the on campus interview process, Aramark provided the best proposal,” said the campus wide email announcing the contract decision. The RFP committee was made up of faculty, staff, and students, and they voted unanimously for Aramark.
“I don’t know that we ever looked at it as a decision to stay with Aramark or to not stay with Aramark. I’d put it more as we wanted the best dining options for our students and they proposed the best program,” said Dean of Students David Tuttle, one of the leaders of the RFP committee. “When looking at these decisions, we had to focus on the goal, which was to provide the best program for the students and the employees.”
Hannah Larson, a junior and SGA Treasurer, attended the forum. “I was really impressed by the Aramark proposal and I’m looking forward to the upcoming changes next year," she said. "It will be interesting to see how much gets done in time for the fall.”
Other students are skeptical about the proposed changes.
"I feel like it's an unnecessary change to bring in Starbucks, because personally I don't think they're very good, and I appreciated having a sustainable coffee shop like EcoGrounds as opposed to a giant national corporation," said Maddy Walshak, a sophomore.
As some students have been critical about the quality of Aramark food in the past, they are wondering if Aramark will be able to win them over.
"I am excited to see if Aramark can subvert the prevailing opinion that they are underperforming here at Trinity," said David Spindel, a sophomore.
These proposed changes are planned to go into effect by Fall 2018.
Related story: Aramark beats out competitors for dining RFP
No comments:
Post a Comment