Our Thoughts
This study revealed that although students do have access to food, there seems to be a disconnect between having proper access to food and the affordability of these meals. As gathered from the survey, over half of the respondents expressed that they have experienced skipping meals due to budget constraints and have also felt pressured to eat less due to these financial concerns. It is evident that this disconnect between access and affordability has impacted students' nutritional intake, and for some has contributed to both an unhealthy schedule and habits.
There also appears to be some dissatisfaction with the university meal plan, which operates on a dining dollar system. With this system, as opposed to unlimited swipes, students only pay for what they would like to eat. However, the expensive pricing of food in both the dining hall and at the retail dining locations, causes financial constraints when budgeting one's meal plan. Additionally, there seems to be a trend where the healthier dining options are listed at a higher price compared to the other options. This disparity especially impacts those without access to reliable transportation, as they have limited access acquiring healthy alternatives off campus. After comparing the data from the student with that of the administration, it is clear that there are two opposing perspectives regarding the accessibility of food on campus. While it may be true that the dining services offers a flexible menu variety, the dollar meal plan system does not couple well with the expensive costs of the food being offered. It is not ideal for students to allocate roughly $10 per day, when the meal prices do not allow for this.