During the Oct. 15 Associated Student Government meeting, representatives from Miami Dining spoke to senators about the student and parent feedback and the transition from Aramark to Chartwell.
Geno Svec, senior director of dining services, addressed complaints he has received from both parents and students. He noted that at the start of every academic year, dining services at universities across the country see a natural uptick in negative responses as students, especially first-years, adjust to life on campus.
“For us to get through this period is very difficult,” Svec said. “All that transition causes a lot of anxiety and people handle it differently; the food is terrible, nothing is right, no one can find a fork. These are all things that happen every single year.”
Svec also addressed feedback regarding the allergen stations located around campus.
“Our allergen program is one of the best in the region,” Svec said. “We’re focused on the top nine allergens and we’re getting stronger and better every single day. We know there is a lot of chatter around gluten and cross contamination, people getting sick because of gluten … unfortunately … it’s not 100% accurate.”
Svec said a new “swabbing system” is being implemented in allergy-free stations around campus, where the stations are swabbed for gluten cross-contamination. While “countless” tests have been run across campus, only one came back positive for cross-contamination. The area has since been decontaminated and has not tested positive since.
Svec said dining is beginning to look into new developments for next fall semester relating to allergen-free dining options on campus. This includes a locker concept, similar to current offerings at Bell Tower, located in the space that used to be Garden Common’s Market.
“We could actually say that it is allergen-free,” Svec said. “You wouldn’t be able to enter the space unless you were an employee. The food would come in a sealed container in a sealed bag and [be] delivered through a locker system … we could ensure that it was safe until it got to you.”
In addition to the briefing, Speaker of the Senate Shelby Alford announced a special election for Secretary of the Treasury. Secretary Jeff Koch is departing from his position next semester to study abroad. This is a campus-wide election, open to all Miami students.
Senator Bill Kwan acknowledged a concern regarding a lack of washers and dryers in Stoddard, Elliott and Bishop Halls.
Secretary for Communications Gracie Grady presented revamped ASG branding guidelines. This featured new colors, updated fonts and an additional logo. Legislation regarding the new branding guidelines will be presented during next week’s meeting at 6 p.m. on Oct. 22. in the Joslin Senate Chamber.
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