In our ongoing struggle against the new meal plan, shared from
Dartblog:
Will Hix ‘12 has written to Dartmouth Dining Services Director Dave
Newlove with a proposal for a smarter set of student dining choices. We
wish Will luck, but we aren’t betting on him.
––– Forwarded message –––-
From: William Hix
Date: Sun, May 15, 2011 at 1:44 AM
Subject: Open Letter to DDS Director David Newlove
To: “David J. Newlove”
Cc: “Sylvia C. Spears” , April.D.Thompson@dartmouth.edu, “Callista R. Womick” , Torrey.Barrett@dartmouth.edu, Elisabeth.Ericson@dartmouth.edu, “David A. Rice”, “Blaine W. Ponto”
Dear Mr. Newlove,
Thank you for meeting with me this past week to discuss the proposed
meal plan options. Each opportunity I have to speak with College
administrators gives me a greater appreciation of the difficulties with
pleasing a large, diverse group of people. Many of the students who are
frustrated with SmartChoice understand that you are trying very hard to
incorporate their concerns into the meal plan for next year. I
appreciate your support and urge you to consider the following when
modifying the proposed plans:
First, the proposed minimum plan, “SmartChoice10,” imposes an effective fine of $3,051 per year on students:
The current minimum plan, “Mini Green,” costs $3,675 per year for an
equal amount of DBA. The current maximum plan, “Super Green,” costs
$5,925 per year for the equivalent of $7,749 DBA. The purchasing power
for meals on the minimum plan is worth $4,074 per year less than the
maximum plan, but the plan costs $2,250 per year less than the maximum
plan, an effective fine of $1,824 per year, worth 49.6% of the cost of
the minimum plan, levied on students who pick the minimum plan
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/dining/plans/).
Excluding DBA, the proposed minimum plan charges $3,900 per year for
300 meals (10/week, 10-week terms, 3 terms) at a rate of $13.00 per
meal. The proposed maximum plan, “SmartChoice20,” charges $4,749 for 600
meals per year for a purchasing power of $7,800 at $13.00 per meal. The
purchasing power for meals on the minimum plan is worth $3,900 per year
less than the maximum plan, but the plan costs $849 per year less than
the maximum plan, an effective fine of $3,051 per year, worth 78.2% of
the cost of the minimum plan, levied on students who pick the minimum
plan (http://www.dartmouth.edu/dining/dds/smartchoice.html).
Students who purchased the minimum plan this year will lose an
additional $1,227 in purchasing power next year if they pick the
proposed minimum plan. The proposed minimum plan should be modified to
return the purchasing power penalty of the minimum plan to approximately
49.6% of the cost of the plan.
Second, the proposed minimum plan ($4,320/year) costs $645 more per
year than the current minimum plan ($3,675/year) and is the most
expensive minimum plan among the five other Ivy League schools that
offer meal plan options:
$4,320-$4,974 per year Dartmouth SmartChoice10-SmartChoice20
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/dining/dds/smartchoice.html)
$4,287-$4,287 per year UPenn BFF-EAT
(http://www.cafebonappetit.com/penn/diningplans/firstyear/)
$4,270-$6,220 per year Cornell Basic Bear-Golden Bear
(http://housing.cornell.edu/campuslife/dining/options.cfm)
$3,675-$4,200 per year Dartmouth Mini Green-Green
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/dining/plans/)
$3,244-$4,158 per year Brown 7/week-20/week
(http://www.brown.edu/Student_Services/Food_Services/mealplans/index.php)
$3,010-$5,473 per year Princeton Block 95-Unlimited
(http://www.princeton.edu/facilities/info/dining/files/next-year-prices.pdf)
$1,890-$4,440 per year Columbia Plan D-Plan A
(http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/meal-plans-flex/plans.html)
Among the five other Ivy League schools with meal plan options, the
median minimum meal plan is $1,082 per term and the mean is $1,113 per
term. The proposed minimum plan should be modified to cost approximately
$1,100 per term.
Third, the proposed plans include meal credits that expire weekly
with no rollover. The plans are the least flexible among the four other
Ivy League schools with meal plans that include DBA, as they have the
smallest proportion of DBA to total meal plan cost:
1.000 Dartmouth Green with termly rollover
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/dining/plans/)
0.187 UPenn Best Food Fit Plan with termly rollover
(http://www.cafebonappetit.com/penn/diningplans/firstyear/)
0.234 Cornell Bear Basic Plan with no rollover
(http://housing.cornell.edu/campuslife/dining/options.cfm)
0.120 Brown Flex 460 Plan with termly rollover
(http://www.brown.edu/Student_Services/Food_Services/mealplans/index.php)
0.102 Columbia Plan C with 15 floating meals/semester
(http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/meal-plans-flex/plans.html)
0.097 Dartmouth SmartChoice10 with no rollover
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/dining/dds/smartchoice.html)
Among the four other institutions with DBA, the median percentage of
discretionary dining dollars to total meal plan cost is 15.4% and the
mean is 16.1%. The proposed meal plans should be modified to use only
DBA or restore DBA to at least 15.7% of the total meal plan cost, and
should include termly rollover to preserve DBA in student accounts.
Finally, I would like to offer an alternative to the proposed meal plans that incorporates these suggestions:
Alternative Meal Plan Summary
$1,658 SmartChoice200: 200 meals/term + $50 DBA
$1,500 SmartChoice140: 140 meals/term + $100 DBA
$1,300 SmartChoice100: 100 meals/term + $150 DBA
$1,100 SmartChoice70: 70 meals/term + $225 DBA
$850 SmartChoice50: 50 meals/term + $150 DBA (off campus only)
Notes: Meals do not roll over each term but DBA does. SmartChoice200
will be the default plan for first-year students and will prevent
students from using too many meals early in the term by limiting the
number of meals per day to four. Meals equivalents may be purchased on
DBA for $12.50. 1953 Commons should have a small cafe outside of the
pay-per-meal zone that charges items to DBA as well as seating for
students who are not buying a meal.
Students should also be allowed to opt-out of SmartChoice altogether
in favor of a plan with only DBA ($1,100 minimum). Meal equivalents
would cost $12.50 at all locations during the day. Students would be
offered a bonus on each dollar deposited in the following brackets:
$1,100-$1,300: 50%
$1,300-$1,500: 75%
$1,500+: 100%
Because I only have access to publicly available information about
the meal plans, I understand that the alternative plans may require some
modification. Please consider the three main suggestions, which are
backed by evidential comparisons to the current meal plans at other Ivy
League schools. I am excited to continue this discussion with you and
the other members of the Dartmouth community during the coming weeks.
Respectfully submitted,
William R. Hix ‘12
