Campus Dining Today - NACUFS 2023 - 53

RIT Dining explores the
future of meal plans
Kory Samuels, associate vice president, Auxiliary Services,
rochester Institute of Technology, presents during the
" Operator to Administrator " learning session.
The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
Dining team discussed challenges and trends
in campus dining meal plans in this interactive
session. They implemented policy changes in
2021 after COVID-19, moving away from the
all-you-care-to-eat (AYCTE) model to a retail
model, and only offering declining balance plans.
Both changes created unexpected difficulties,
for instance, requiring them to build a hybrid
model on the fly to accommodate visiting groups.
Students struggled with budgeting on the
declining balance plans, so the team implemented
a $1,000 cap on rollover funds from year to year.
They experienced successes through COVID, as
changes allowed them to keep dining locations
open, but they are now implementing new
changes based on feedback-transitioning their
largest facility back to AYCTE and adding a block
meal plan option.
The Intersection of Mental Health
and Nutrition
Heather Carrera, DCN, MS, CNS, CDN, nutrition
and wellness manager, Campus Auxiliary Services,
SUNY Geneseo
Powering the Student Experience
Through Innovative Campus Dining
Joie Schoonover, director of business
development, CBORD
Sami Takieddine, director, platform operations &
patron engagement, CBORD
The Future of Meal Plans
Susan Blaha, associate director - business services,
RIT Dining at Rochester Institute of Technology
Erin Hartter, business relations manager, RIT Dining
at Rochester Institute of Technology
Karla Orozco, director of operations - retail and
convenience stores, RIT Dining at Rochester
Institute of Technology
Jake Reed, reporting and data specialist, RIT Dining
at Rochester Institute of Technology
The RIT Dining team discussed technology,
including point-of-sale and transaction
processing. Their customer facing platforms
are Tiger Spend, which is connected to Atrium
and allows customers to view balances, add
funds and track spending, and Tiger Pay, which
uses an encrypted barcode for mobile payment
credentials at point-of-sale. For on-campus
partners, a Tiger Bucks transaction portal
connects them to the dining system. Tiger
Spend reload stations, which look like ATMs,
allow customers to add funds to RIT ID cards or
reloadable cards dispensed at the machines. RIT
is completely cashless since making the transition
in 2020, except for some concessions.
RIT staff said they did experience pushback
during the first year, but it is now accepted. Some
faculty and staff needed to be walked through
the system, but there was never enough pushback
that it went to student council. The group
surveyed attendees regarding who was accepting
cash on campus-many raised their hands for
yes, some were transitioning, and a few were also
cashless.
LeArNING SeSSIONS
| CAMPUS DINING TODAY

53
reTUrN TO TABLe OF CONTeNTS
Campus Dining Today - NACUFS 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Campus Dining Today - NACUFS 2023
