Editor in Chief- Grace LaTourelle
The decision to move forward with the AYCE model was approved despite Student Senate Resolution
On Monday, Oct. 5th, 2026, Student Senate unanimously passed “Resolution on Meal Plan Change,” in which they urged the Board of Trustees to not approve the 2027-2028 Comprehensive Fee at their meeting. The Resolution was communicated to students through email on Monday. Despite this, the Board of Trustees approved the budget on Friday, October 9, which passed the proposed ‘All-You-Care-to-Eat’ (AYCE), swipes based meal plan.
The Resolution cited data collected from the “Attitudes Towards Proposed Meal Plan Change” survey, sent out by Student Senate on Oct. 2nd, 2026, which yielded 690 student responses. According to the results, 69.3% of the students that responded were in favor of keeping the current à la carte system, while 13.1% were in favor of changing to the proposed AYCE system. Furthermore, in response to the question “Based on President Volin’s email and knowing that the details are still being figured out, do you support or oppose the switch to the AYCE model,” 40.6% of the 688 responses were “Strongly oppose” and another 22.7% were “Somewhat oppose.”
The resolution was drafted by Student Senate Co-Presidents and Seniors Laura Sunnarborg and Ester Ljunggren, as well as Health and Housing Chair and Senior Eric Hofer. It concluded that they urged the Board of Trustees to “require the President’s Office to take more time to gather student and community input before implementing the model switch, perhaps with a target new model start date of Fall 2028,” as well.
“We asked…why President Volin wanted this done Fall 2027, not later… we felt like we weren’t really given proper reasoning as to why,” Hofer commented. “So, the resolution we drafted wasn’t to say ‘no, we don’t want all-you-care-to-eat ever…let’s save this for another year so we can gather proper student input and make sure this benefits the most people.’”
Prior to drafting the resolution, Ljunggren, Sunnarborg, and Hofer met with President John Volin and Chief of Staff and Vice President of Strategy Katie Bishop to discuss the survey results.
“Those statistics did not change their minds…The three of us in that room felt that the voice of students was not playing a major role in this decision. And so if the President’s Office was not going to be swayed by student voice, we wanted to try taking it to the Board of Trustees,” Sunnarborg explained.
Amongst other concerns identified from free responses in the survey–such as cost, flexibility, food waste, food insecurity, dietary needs, inconsistency, and need for more information–some Student Senate members acknowledged the lack of student input and involvement as a major concern with the proposed meal plan. The resolution indicated in one clause that the “decision to pursue an AYCE swipe system was made on or by June 1st, 2026, at which point there had been no public opportunity for students to comment on an AYCE system.”
The Resolution also acknowledged the misrepresentation of data, writing, “the data that the President’s Office has thus far provided regarding student support for the change to an all-you-care-to-eat (AYCE) system has been found to be largely misrepresented comparing both to previously provided and currently gathered survey data.”
This clause was in reference to the original email Volin sent out regarding the proposal on Sep. 18th, 2026. In the email, Volin provided that according to survey results, “75% of students indicated dissatisfaction with the current dining model.”
According to the Student Senate email that was sent to the Board of Trustees including their Resolution, the data that Volin was referring to was from a 2025 Student Senate survey regarding the meal plan options, which yielded 299 responses. In it, only 44% of students in the survey indicated that they were “very dissatisfied” or “dissatisfied.”
“The President’s Office has admitted to us that that was a mistake, but never owned up to the student body about it. After that, they claimed in both an email to the Student Senate and an email to employees that a majority of students indicated dissatisfaction, which still isn’t true,” Sunnarborg wrote in the email to the Board of Trustees.
Gusties raise concerns about process
While part of the concern for the AYCE model has been content focused, students and some members of the Student Senate have identified a greater concern for how the process has been handled.
“I think that the administration wanted to walk hand in hand with students without giving us equal and mutual respect and authority in our due…standing in the school,” one anonymous student remarked.
Faculty and staff received an email notifying them of the proposed meal plan switch on Wednesday, Sep. 30th, a week and a half after students. As of Wednesday, Oct. 14th, faculty, staff, and students have not been notified by the President’s Office of the Board of Trustees’ decision.
“I do have questions about the planned change and its impact on both students and others who eat on campus. From the students who have talked to me about the policy, I know they are concerned about cost and the ability to access food in ways that fit their busy schedules,” Professor of Political Science Kate Knutson said. “I also think the students, and Student Senate in particular, have raised important and thoughtful questions about the reasons and evidence provided as a rationale for the new policy.”
Volin explained that while staff and faculty will still be able to access dining services on campus, how they will pay for their meals and other accessibility issues have not yet been finalized.
“As someone who appreciates being able to use the Caf– I love gyros on Fridays– I am also curious to see how the new system will work for faculty and staff,” Professor of Religion Sarah Ruble expressed.
Moving forward with implementation
With the Board of Trustees’ approval of the budget, the AYCE system will move forward with the design process to be implemented in the fall semester of 2027. However, the process began prior to Volin’s term as President with the identified need to evaluate the dining plan. Volin explained that when he became President in 2025, he approved moving forward with an external consulting firm which analyzed the current meal plan.
Volin explained that the external review team recommended transition from the current à la carte system to the AYCE model.
“Importantly, this was a decision about the overall direction of our dining program, not a fully developed or finalized plan. The next phase is just as important,” Volin said.
Assistant Director of Dining Services Bobbi Sellner explained that there are many considerations that need to be made moving forward with operations, such as “selecting and implementing a new point-of-sale (POS) system, determining grocery and supply needs, evaluating staffing levels and schedules, developing menus, and reviewing food offerings across all dining locations.”
“Dining Services will need to evaluate how the new plan affects food purchasing, portioning, food waste, staffing, menu variety, service flow, and the overall student dining experience. The layout and capacity of dining spaces will also be important considerations. Ultimately, the impact of the new meal plan will depend on how effectively it is implemented and how well the dining program adapts to students’ needs. Careful planning and ongoing feedback will be important as the campus transitions to this new model,” Sellner said.
Student Senate elected three senators, Environmental Sustainability Chair and Sophomore Charles deVries, 2028 Class Representative and Junior Sarah Gutuza, and aforementioned Chair Hofer to serve on the “Dining Program Design Team.” deVries also noted that Senate will continue to work on food insecurity related issues, such as reinstating the Food Insecurity Task Force that convened last Spring. For the month of October, Student Senate is also partnering with and supporting the Gustie Pantry, according to Sunnarborg.
Volin explained that during the design process, the design team will look at how other institutions run their meal plans and evaluate how different measures can be applied to Gustavus.
Students across campus have expressed their concern on how the new meal plan will affect availability of food and cost for Fall of 2027.
“I don’t have the specifics of final details to share however, I do know that the food will be excellent and the choices will be expansive and driven by student and customer input. Additional information is being collected and compiled to ensure the Gustavus community will be well represented as the new program is implemented,” Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services Steve Kjellgren commented.
Volin noted that details about pricing will “be shared shortly.”
Other perspectives
Some students, however, are excited about the new meal plan, especially those that often go over their budget each month.
“…I’m on Meal Plan 3, and I either end up with way too much money, or, like this year, end up very far in the negatives,” an anonymous student said. “I think people are getting too caught up on the price. Due to inflation, the cost of the meal plan will likely increase regardless. I also think change is a good thing. We’ve had the current meal plan for a while, and it isn’t working for everyone. I think people should be a little more open-minded about trying something new.”
Members of Student Senate acknowledged that this change may be seen as a positive to many students.
“That also very much goes for the people that are in favor of the meal plan,” deVries explained. “We are opposing the lack of information and input we are given, not the concept itself.”
Volin also noted that, despite student concern, the AYCE meal plan may be better for parts of the student body.
“…we have a responsibility to consider the long-term needs of our entire student body, including future students. After considerable study and discussion, I continue to believe that moving to an all-you-care-to-eat dining model is the right direction for Gustavus. It will provide more predictable access to meals, greater nutritional choice, and opportunities to strengthen community through shared dining experiences,” Volin explained.
Students are commended for voicing their opinions
Sunnarborg noted that the President’s Office has been available to multiple in-person meetings and was helpful in making sure that the Board of Trustees received their resolution prior to their meeting.
“I took the Student Senate resolution and the concerns expressed by students very seriously. I have appreciated the opportunity to meet with students, hear their perspectives, and better understand what they value about our current dining program, as well as their concerns about the proposed changes. I recognize that many students remain disappointed with the decision, and I respect their views,” Volin said.
Sunnarborg also expressed her gratitude for people that attended the Senate meetings, filled out the surveys, and talked with them during tabling. Sunnarborg encouraged students to continue to contact their senators, show up to meetings, and fill out their anonymous community contact form.
Sunnarborg explained that this issue was a lot “more contentious” than the problems Senate usually deals with. Public Relations Chair and Senior Sset Zermeño commended students for voicing their concerns and how this issue and student response to it has set a precedent for “how students are willing to be heard and how students are striving to have an impact.”
“I think that we should be proud of Gustavus students…espeically considering the fact that so many students engaged in this process are seniors…I think it shows a lot…the fact that seniors who are very engaged in this question…because seniors aren’t going to be a part of this new meal plan and that shows care for the community and the school itself,” Ljunggren said.
As such, students are encouraged to continue to voice their opinions not only about the new meal plan, but also for other issues that concern them on campus.
“…students should always voice their concerns and make sure they’re heard… Without students, there’s no Gustavus. So we have the right to speak,” Ljunggren concluded.
However, Volin explained that “being heard does not always mean we will agree on every decision.”
“But it does mean their perspectives matter, and I am committed to ensuring those perspectives help shape the dining experience we create together,” Volin said. “While the decision to move forward has been made, the opportunity to shape what the new program looks like is very real. My commitment is that students will be an important part of that process, and that we will continue listening, learning, and improving as we move forward.”