So Miami just sent out an email to its returning students about changes in the meal plans and dining halls. And the changes are horrible. If you live on Western, and use Western Dining Hall, you will no longer be able to eat breakfast there. No meals whatsoever before 11am. Plus, Western Dining Hall will be completely closed on weekends! No meals whatsoever. These same changes are being instituted at Martin Dining Hall. Basically Miami is saying a big “screw you” to all the students on Western including the Honors College which is located on Western. We are paying over 4500 a semester for a significantly devalued meal plan.
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Miami always says caring for its students is their primary job…and then they pull this crap. I guess it proves that, you can listen to what people say but it’s always better to watch what they do.
BTW, as a healthy-eating advocate, I learned a long time ago and practiced the ritual of breakfast being the most important meal of the day to kick start both my day and whatever brain cells I still have left at 80.
Hopefully “Mother Miami” will see the error in their ways and change this mistake fast…
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Did they say why they are making those changes. My son will be a freshman next year and debating honors college. I would think he would want to eat on the weekends
Our daughter is in the Honors College. All three Honors College Residence Halls are on Western, along with several other residence halls. She learned of this reading her Miami emails in the car last night as we were headed back to campus. Miami did not inform the parents of this. She said the email said something about changes in who was running the dining halls. I don’t care who it is contracted out to. Miami has the final say about these things and should have never made these changes. So now for breakfast and all meals on weekends she either has to go to Garden which is by Farmer or Maple Street. We are not happy about this and intend to voice our displeasure. I would suggest you do the same.
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Here’s how out of touch I am, I thought the two honors dorms were Elliot and Stoddard? Maybe in the late 1800s when I attended……
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HLB the Honors College built new residence halls in 2014 on Western: Hillcrest, Stonebridge, and Young. Our daughter is in Hillcrest.
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The changes are effective immediately. As in today. I checked the dining hall website.
That seriously sucks. It was bad enough walking from Mary Lyon to Alexander to eat, and that was only across a parking lot. I would be pissed.
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Not acceptable by any means. In addition to the burden placed on the students, I’d suspect a number of people lost their jobs or had their hours curtailed. I wonder how much notice employees were provided?
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According to my daughter, Martin was closed last semester on the weekends. She lives in Flower - which is not a close walk to anything. She told me they often walked all the way to Maple Street Station to eat on weekends.
I guess that’s a good way to work off the food you are about to eat.
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Elliott and Stoddard were Honors dorms back when I was there, too. As a summer tour guide we were also told at least part of those two historic halls were for language immersion.
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I only set foot on Western campus to go to the CPPO. Or to get a contact buzz.
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Yes Flower is not close to a dining hall now either. It sucks for these kids.
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Maybe it’s a test to see which student’s entrepreneurial spirit will kick in to solve the dilemma.
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And the school is building more on campus dorms. Seems backwards. But maybe fewer and fewer students are actually using the dining services? I mean don’t most frats / sororities (at other schools) offer something other than 3x7 meal plans?
There definitely should be a reduction is the dining fees as a result. “Walk a little further” isn’t acceptable when some students made a decision to live on campus because of the proximity to a dining hall (north quad and Martin)
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I stayed in Elliott for two years. It was wonderful.
Our window faced Upham Hall. We used a megaphone to broadcast out daily “show.”
For a “de valued meal plan” that was already PAID FOR,correct?
Keep on 'em Blues!
And Miami is wondering why they have a tough time retaining students after their freshman year.
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Or maybe it’s not enough employees. What’s the starting wage now for a dining hall worker, $15/hour? That’s at the low end of competitive for other jobs. Universities up here have had to curtail dining hall hours because they haven’t been able to attract workers, adults and students.
Might also have something to do with the private contractors trying to maximize their profits. The one constant when government services are privatized and contracted out is that the only beneficiary ends up being the contracted for-profit firm.
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