On April 1, Trinity students began noticing that the university had altered next year’s meal plans on their website. In response, students took to Fizz and a petition to voice their concerns, focusing particularly on increased prices, reduced meal exchanges and lack of communication surrounding the change.
Though the off-campus meal plans remain the same, the university altered the three on-campus meal plans, the website shows. The cost of each plan increased by an average of $182.10 per semester, and all three plans switched from daily meal exchanges – for up to seven exchanges per week – to a limited number of weekly exchanges. The full list of alterations are as follows.
The Bronze Plan: $2,992.75 per semester
- Price increased by $286.50
- No change in Bonus Bucks per semester
- Six fewer meal swipe exchanges per week
- No change in meal swipes per week
- Three fewer guest swipes per semester
The Silver Plan: $3,182.55 per semester
- Price increased by $151.55
- $200 more Bonus Bucks per semester
- Four fewer meal swipe exchanges per week
- Nineteen meal swipes increased to unlimited swipes per semester
- Seven fewer guest swipes per semester
The Maroon Unlimited Plan: $3,464 per semester
- Price increased by $108.25
- No change in Bonus Bucks per semester
- Two fewer meal swipe exchanges per week
- No change in meal swipes per semester
- Eight fewer guest swipes per semester
Students started Fizzing their complaints on Wednesday, expressing that the meal plans were not worth the price. Soon after, Eden Noelle Avera, first-year psychology major, created a petition on Change.org to urge the university to restore the 2025-2026 meal plans improve the 2026-2027 plans, the petition description reads.
If the university cares about student accessibility and accommodations, Avera wrote, they will alter the meal plans. She listed five central issues with the changes:
- The prices increased, while the values decreased
- Lowering meal exchanges prevents proper nourishment for students
- The updates discriminate against students with dietary restrictions or issues
- The Bronze plan does not provide three meals per day
- The university did not inform students of the changes
As of April 3, the petition has received 707 signatures, with 22 supporter comments. Trinity administration was unable to provide comment by the time of publication.
*This is an ongoing story. Please check back for more updates.
