Temple and Aramark debuted their new meal plans and extensive dining options just a few weeks ago when the fall semester kicked off. While Chick-fil-a still has everyone a buzz, the new dining plans have others abandoning their meal swipes.
“The SAC is where I get the majority of my meals on campus and when I found out I wouldn’t get to use all the swipes there it was upsetting and I decided not to get one anymore,” said junior Nicole Rizzo.
Endri Baduni, Aramark’s Resident District Manager, said these changes to student swipes are a direct result of the request to bring new flavors to campus.
“Every meal plan has a specific amount of meals that the students can use at all of our retail locations except for Starbucks. We call these meals meal equivalencies.” Baduni went on to explain that the board equivalencies are to be used at traditional dining halls, such as J&H, while the standard equivalencies can be used at other locations, like the SAC.
But students say these changes are taking away from their dining experience.
“It’s really limiting where you use them, like they’re not giving you the option to use them at the new venues which was probably preferred,” said Nikki D’Agostino. “I’m pretty unhappy with it. I think it took away a lot of the student’s freedom with being able to use the meal plan and it’s very expensive.”
“It is inconvenient now I have to keep loading Diamond Dollars onto my account when I could’ve just had my meal plan and swiped in whenever I wanted food,” said Rizzo.
“Restructuring the meal plans the way we have done allows us to give the students the variety and the food quality needed and to bring on campus the brands that they asked us for, said Baduni.
So how can students tell how their meal swipes equal out? Here’s the breakdown:
PREMIUM – Meals allotted weekly to use without restrictions of meal zones & the ability to bring in friends
Premium 25
- 25 meals per week • $150 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 14 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,972/semester
Premium 15
- 15 meals per week • $150 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 8 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,999/semester
Premium 12
- 15 meals per week • $150 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 8 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,999/semester
Premium 10
- 10 meals per week • $150 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 5 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,787/semester
Premium 8
- 8 meals per week • $150 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 4 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,375/semester
Premium 5
- 5 meals per week • $50 Diamond Dollars/ semester
- 3 meal equivalencies included in meals per week• $888/semester
REGULAR – Meals allotted weekly to be used once per meal zone
Regular 10
- 10 meals per week • $150 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 5 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,529/semester
Regular 8
- 8 meals per week • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 4 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $1,164/semester
Regular 5
- 5 meals per week • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 3 meal equivalencies included in meals per week • $888/semester
J&H UNLIMITED – Unlimited access to all-you-care-to-eat dining with no meal zone restrictions
- Unlimited access to Louis J. Esposito Dining Center
- 12 meal equivalencies per week • $1,907/semester
PREMIUM BLOCKS – Meals allotted by semester to use without restrictions of meal zones & the ability to bring in friends
100 Meals per Semester
- 100 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 55 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $968/semester
75 Meals per Semester
- 75 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 55 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $744/semester
45 Meals per Semester
- 45 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 25 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $472/semester
30 Meals per Semester
- 30 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 17 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $332/semester
15 Meals per Semester
- 15 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 15 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $193/semester
10 Meals per Semester
- 10 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 10 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $146/semester
5 Meals per Semester
- 5 meals/semester • $50 Diamond Dollars/semester
- 5 meal equivalencies included in semester meals • $99/semester
Baduni encouraged all Temple students to contact them with any questions or concerns about their meal plan. They can also check the Diamond Dollars tab or the TU Mobile App to get more information about their specific plan.
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