Dining Services and Residential Life recently made exceptions to the new housing-based meal plans that will allow students in certain Special Interest Housing groups to choose meal plans below the minimum required by their residence. Specifically, Special Interest Housing members in Residential Group One can choose a Residential Group Two meal plan (100 Clubs). Furthermore, up to two “senior leaders” from each housing community can choose a Residential Group Four meal plan ($800 Declining). According to Laurel Contomanolis, Director of Residential Life, the changes were made because Special Interest Housing communities in Group One would be competing with residents from other communities in Group Two or lower. Contomanolis also noted that “Residential Life was very concerned that senior leadership would abandon the special interest floors altogether and the groups would lack leadership and mentoring.”

These exceptions may seem reasonable until you consider the justifications for the new meal plans in the first place. Residential Life and Dining argued that kitchen availability, not seniority, should determine meal plan requirements. Special Interest Housing groups have the same kitchen access as everyone else in their dorms and should therefore have to follow the same meal plan rules as students only a floor above or below. Moreover, Residential Life is subsidizing dining to allow Residential Advisors to have lower meal plans than they would normally be required to. These changes undermine the legitimacy of the reasoning provided for the meal plan changes, showing that Residential Life does not think its staff should be subjected to this “logic” and is willing to consider the needs of specific Special Interest Housing groups before those of the undergraduate community as whole.

If Residential Life and Dining are willing to make exceptions for some students, why not make them for all? No student wanting to live on campus should feel pressured by high-priced meal plans in their choice of housing. It is clear from Residential Life’s willingness to grant exceptions that they know the concept of linking meal plans to housing holds little merit. It would be appropriate of them to admit their mistake and change meal plan options for everyone rather than granting inconsistent exceptions.