Baylor Faculty and Staff Dining Price Adjustments
Baylor Faculty, Staff and Graduate Students:
Baylor University’s administration regularly reviews the institution’s policies and practices to ensure we are good stewards of the resources with which we have been entrusted, including a range of benefits and advantages available to faculty and staff.
Faculty and staff on-campus meal prices have not increased in nearly 20 years, while student meal plans have in essence paced with inflation during that same time frame. This has created a unique and incredibly generous discount for faculty and staff.
As we further prioritize Baylor’s affordability for students, we must acknowledge that the current rate of institutional subsidy for faculty and staff, their spouses and their dependents to access deep dining discounts is fiscally unsustainable.
While a difficult decision, the University has approved the following faculty and staff dining price adjustments effective August 1. Additionally, faculty and staff dining discounts will be evaluated regularly going forward to ensure inflationary concerns are considered and that discounts remain at sustainable rates for the University. The new faculty and staff dining rates will be as follows:
- Residence Hall Dining: The door rate will increase to $5.50 for all meals, which is a more than 50% discount on the standard door rate.
- McMullen-Connally Faculty Center: All menu items, the buffet and salad bar will increase by $2.00, with beverage pricing remaining the same.
- Retail Dining: For Chick-fil-A, Panda Express, Asian Tako and the Law School Café, the dining discount will remain 50% for all bi-weekly employees (non-exempt/paid hourly) with a Baylor Staff ID card.
The faculty and staff members who are eligible to access each of these dining options is unchanged, and their ability to invite spouses and dependents to dine in the residence halls at the above discounted door rate remains the same as well.
In response to feedback from many faculty and the Graduate Student Association, graduate students will for the first time be able to purchase meals at the discounted faculty and staff rate in the residence halls. This includes Baylor Law School students, George W. Truett Theological Seminary students and distance education students on campus for immersive sessions. Graduate students now comprise almost 25% of Baylor’s student population, and we are pleased to make dining on campus more affordable for them.
In considering these pricing adjustments, it is important to remember reduced dining is a distinct advantage for Baylor faculty and staff, but it is also subject to change periodically, alongside other campus changes.
In addition, since the administration has been considering this matter for several years, these pricing adjustments are not the result of the previously announced transition from Aramark to Chartwells Higher Education as Baylor’s dining services provider. Had the University continued its partnership with Aramark, adjustments would have still been implemented.
Finally, even with these pricing adjustments, faculty and staff will continue to see significant value in campus dining when compared to other dining establishments in the Waco area. The residential dining experience remains all-you-care-to eat, and spouses and dependents continue to be welcomed.
We understand that news of increased costs is always difficult to receive, whether it’s increased tuition, room and board for students, or dining costs for faculty and staff. We do not take such decisions lightly as we strive to be good stewards of the University’s financial resources. We appreciate the attention and care of the evaluation committee, which includes perspectives of staff and faculty from across the University, and we thank you for your dedication to Baylor and support of our students.