For most students, the dining hall is an integral part of their college experience. It is a place to spend time with friends, do work, and most importantly, eat. Having full control of every meal is an independence many young adults in college have not dealt with in their lifetime.
That independence expanded when Indiana University made the switch to the ‘All You Care to Eat’ dining program in fall of 2022. This new system is a semi-drastic difference from their previous debit card system because with only one swipe, students have access to any meal in that certain dining hall.
This transition works to combat food insecurities by allowing unlimited swipes to their locations across campus upon purchase of a meal plan. This ensures that students have access to a balanced meal for the entirety of the semester. Indiana is one of the last schools in the Big Ten to switch over from a debit system. While the idea is there, the transition was no simple feat for administration or students.
Within the first few months, students found these locations to be out of food, closing early, and lacking quality. Freshman Alexis Hipsky recalls having to spend additional money in order feel adequately fed.
“We ended up having to spend more on groceries and making our own food in our dorms even though McNutt doesn’t have a kitchenette for us to use, like we were doing it in our dorm because the dining hall would be running out of food.”
These shortages were not without reason, though, because on top of this large change, Indiana University admitted over 4,000 more students than the previous year, so the adjustment period was ultimately inevitable.
With anticipation of this challenge, Director of Residential Dining Ken Field already had his team hard at work to accommodate students as quickly as possible.
“We try to message that, we try to talk to students to find out what they like, and make sure that we have things.”
Among others, the All You Care to Eat facilities made big adjustments to their hours to ensure students could eat around their busy schedules. One of the most memorable aspects to this was extended breakfast.
“They keep the breakfast part of the dining hall open later than what you would usually expect it to be. If I wanted to come in around 1pm they would probably still be serving sausage, eggs, and anything that you could want,” Hipsky said.
These changes did not just come out of thin air either. Field and his staff have constantly been sending out feedback forms and making changes like extended breakfast from students like Alexis’ feedback. On average, each dining facility is serving 20,000 students a day, so while it is impossible to please everybody that scans their card, it does help get a feel for what the general population is looking for in their meal experiences.