By Sophia Harris Editor-in-Chief Students may have noticed some updates to the McCarthy Dining Commons when they returned from winter break. Some changes came from concerns brought up by students during the Student Government Association’s Administrators Forum, which took place on Oct. 28. At the meeting, Student Trustee Jeremy McDonald asked if there were a possibility of allocating meal swipes differently in order for student-athletes to use their dinner swipe before the dinner period, when they are usually in practice. Dining Services announced on Jan. 27 that they redesigned the value, value plus, premier, and senior meal plans to allow students the ability to use the allotted weekly meals however they desire, Michael Newmark, the acting general manager of dining services, said. In the past, the allotted meals were restricted to three per day. Now, students can use how many meal swipes they want per day, up to the allotted meals per week, Newmark said. He added, “Our partnership with SGA is great and I look forward to future collaborations to provide an outstanding dining experience. The Administrators Forum is an important part of the process.” President of SGA Evelyn Campbell said McDonald brought the concern to the table with meal swipes because he is on the hockey team and noticed a shortcoming in the past program. “We wanted to make it easier for student-athletes to be able to use their swipes to grab food before games and practices,” she said. Campbell said, “We love collaborating with Dining and are really appreciative of all of their help. We are excited that student concerns are addressed in a timely manner. We cannot wait to continue our collaboration to make student life better.” She added, “Thank you, Dining, for your hard work!” McDonald said he is “very grateful” that Newmark was able to help SGA “achieve this big win for students.” He added, “The ability for students to maximize their dining plan usage contributes to the value for which Framingham State is known.” McDonald said he is proud to have been able to raise this concern at the Administrators Forum on behalf of his fellow students. “I believe this speaks to the exceptional level of accountability that our administration has to students. I’m happy to have many partners, including Newmark, in the Student Government Association’s continuous advocacy for student interests,” he said. Jamiee Lowe, a sophomore volleyball player, said the expansion of the meal plan “definitely does help.” She said it is especially useful in Sandella’s with Rams on the Run and dining dollars because “it’s a super-fast way to get food if I’m in a rush before a game.” Other updates students might have noticed that happened over winter break include the new dish belt, which was replaced in January before students returned for the spring semester, said Newmark. The dish belt was inoperable for most of the fall semester. During that time, additional staff were required to take dirty dishes from patrons and push them through the tray line. No members of the team were removed when the belt was replaced and they are now working in other areas, said Newmark. He added in the ongoing effort to improve the student-dining experience, Dining has introduced the “Kalamata” station located at “Magellan’s” in the Dining Commons. This Mediterranean-inspired station allows students the ability to customize their meals with “fresh and healthy ingredients,” Newmark said. These include falafel, Mediterranean chicken, rice, pickled onions, and olives. Newmark said students should soon expect a state-of-the-art hot food vending machine, which will be located on the third floor of McCarthy Center down the hall from Dunkin’. “The ‘Just Baked’ machine will be available 24/7 and feature menu items from White Castle hamburgers to bao buns to warm breakfast pastries,” he said. In addition, Newmark said Dining is working with Sal's Pizza in an effort to bring Sal's Pizza specials to FSU Dining on a “special pop-up basis.” He said in March, Dining will introduce a new “virtual dining concept” similar in structure and delivery to Mr. Beast Burger. This will be called AC BBQ, featuring “student-favorite BBQ menu items available to order. The concept was inspired and created by Cedric the Entertainer and Anthony Anderson.” Senior Rachel Kadisevskis said the changes to the dining commons have been great because “we have a lot more options.” She said she was happy the dish belt was working again. Freshman David Forgione said the updates to the dining hall are “really good.” He added, “I think the food here is actually pretty good. I've been pretty impressed.” Junior Audrey Ouellette said she is glad FSU replaced the dish belt. Freshman Vincent Gauthier said regarding the dish belt, “I felt really bad for the workers. They would get a giant line of dishes and it was really gross.” He added he is “really happy” that it is fixed.
