The Brandeis Coalition for Food Service Reform had its first meeting on Oct. 6 during which it developed a list of dining services grievances to present to Aramark when the University's contract with Aramark is considered for renewal in 2009, according to Committee Chair of the Coalition Danielle Hollenbeck-Pringle '10.The Coalition discussed a variety of issues, including dining services labor and safety, healthy food options, dietary restrictions, dining hours and meal-point equivalency.

When asked to comment on whether Aramark is aware of such rising student dissatisfaction, Director of Dining Services Mike Newmark wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that he was "sure" that Aramark's student dining satisfaction scores continue to "increase semester after semester." Newmark also wrote that online surveys are assessed by university administration and the Student Dining Committee "to ensure that student concerns are addressed and that we continue to raise satisfaction scores." He wrote that Aramark "absolutely" encourages and welcomes student feedback.

In the meeting, Labor Coordinator Nathan Ross '11 said that a primary demand is that campus workers retain their jobs, benefits and union protection during the transition of contracts. Ross also addressed understaffing, which he considers to be a key problem. In an e-mail to the Justice, he clarified, "Understaffing means that workers have to do much more than eight hours worth of work within the right hours they're paid for, and this is not safe; nor it is fair."

In his e-mail Ross clarified that the labor demands were compiled with the help of "many people's work and involvement" and the approval of the Brandeis Labor Coalition. He wrote, "Our dining workers have served us thousands of meals and are a part of the community on campus."

The Coalition plans to ask that Aramark collaborate with the dining workers' union. Szkilnik Tolan '11, a Stein employee, also drew attention to the sporadic break times at her workplace and emphasized that employees must be allocated a more solidified and coherent schedule.

The Coalition questioned the safety aspects of working in an environment in which safety instructions are denoted in English while a significant number of staff members do not have a strong grasp on the English language. Considering that the languages spoken include among others, Creole, Spanish and Mandarin, the Coalition is proposing that Brandeis engage in a "translational program to make instructional material in the workplace available in the commonly used primary languages of employees," Ross wrote.

In an e-mail to the Justice, Health, Availability and Dietary Restrictions Coordinator Liza Behrendt '11 wrote, "We want to make sure that all students have access to healthy food, and the information necessary to make healthy choices." The Coalition addressed the problem of the lack of nutrition information available in Usdan, Sherman and the Stein. Behrendt stressed, suggesting that the information needs to be available in the dining halls so students can have access to it while they get their food.

Behrendt noted that as a vegan "who complained quite a lot last year," she is "very satisfied" with this year's vegan options. The Coalition is now pushing for other dietary options such as halal, a preparation of food permissible under the Muslim law, and gluten-free foods, according to Behrendt. She wrote in her e-mail that she does not believe that is it "fair" for students who do not have these options because of dietary restrictions to "be required to purchase the same meal plans as everyone else, and then not have the same access to meal options." Acknowledging the large Muslim community on campus, the Coalition also considered whether there should be flexibility in dining hours during the month of Ramadan.

Behrendt believes that a change in the weekend dining hours will "encourage healthier eating because a lack of access to meals forces students to eat unhealthy food in their rooms, or not eat when they are hungry." The Student Dining Services Advisory Committee is also pushing for a change in dining hours, according to Jenna Brofsky '10, the co-chair of this committee. In an e-mail to the Justice, Brofsky wrote, "We are looking at ways to increase Einstein hours on weekends and to make breakfast at Usdan start earlier on weekends." Newmark, on the other hand, wrote that he believes that dining hours are the subject of "increased" student satisfaction due to the recently extended hours at Einstein's, added brunch hours at Usdan and extended lunch hours at Usdan.

Issues related to increased access to fresh fruits and vegetables, reduction in the usage of grease and food coloring and the availability of hormone-free milk and meat were raised in the meeting.

Giselle Casillas Gonzalez '11, the Coalition's Sustainable Practices Coordinator, elaborated in the meeting that the Coalition is pressing for more biodegradable dishware and utensils in the dining halls. The possibility of composting in Usdan was also discussed.

According to Innermostparts.org, a student-run blog about Brandeis issues, the Coalition's Fair Price Coordinator, Lev Hirschhorn '11, calculated that if students on the 21 Meal Plan ate every meal at Sherman Dining Hall in a semester, it would cost the equivalent of 2808.4 points. This comes out to about 0.85 cents per point spent on each of the three meals used in a day. Each point is equivalent to a dollar.

"We don't know where this extra money is going," Hirschhorn wrote in an e-mail to the Justice. The Coalition wants to "ensure that students get what they pay for."

The Coalition is also in the process of settling on a date to host a forum to spread awareness about the Coalition and its list of demands for all Brandeis students.