At Au Bon Pain in Hesburgh Library, the price of a chicken caprese sandwich is $10.89. At Modern Market in Duncan Student Center, a chipotle chicken wrap will set you back $12.75. At Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh in the Hesburgh Center for International Studies, a falafel bowl starts at $13.29.
Prices at on-campus cafes, restaurants and fast food chains have increased over the last several years. The number of flex points, the University-provided currency that many students use to pay for meals at such locations, however, has not. Data on specific price increases for menu items at Notre Dame are not publicly available.
Students on Notre Dame’s default meal plan have 250 meal swipes, which can be used at the University’s two dining halls over a 16 week semester. Students on the meal plan also receive 500 flex points, effectively $500 attached to a student’s account that can be spent at on-campus dining locations.
The number of flex points the University provides to students has remained flat at 500 since the 2017-2018 school year, despite inflation over nearly a decade, including a particularly steep pandemic-era rise in prices.
In the 2016-2017 school year, students received more flex points than the current academic year, which totaled at 660, in an effort to stem overcrowding in the dining halls during the renovation of North Dining Hall. South Dining Hall is currently undergoing a major multiyear renovation, but students did not receive a bump in their flex points this time around. During the 2015-2016 academic year, students received 410 flex points.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, food prices are 36% higher today than in 2018. To have kept pace with that metric, the number of flex points for students would have had to have increased from 500 to 680 over the same time span. Data indicates that nationally fast food prices surged even higher than general inflation over the same time period.
Charges for meals and housing at Notre Dame have risen significantly since the 2017-2018 school year. In that year, costs for room and meals was $14,890. This year, that cost was $18,438, an increase of 24%.
In a statement to The Observer, Notre Dame Dining did not indicate immediate plans to raise the number of flex points provided to students.
“Changes to meal plan structures, including Flex Point allocations, are evaluated periodically and are informed by operational costs, inflationary pressures, student usage patterns and the overall sustainability of the dining program. At the same time, ND Dining is actively focused on value-oriented offerings across retail locations to help students stretch their Flex Points further during a period of sustained inflation,” the statement read.
Freshman Daniel Lee said he did not feel as though students had enough flex points, adding that he had used his entire balance by around March. He suggested that 750 flex points may be an adequate number.
Sophomore Bridget Selna said she had used up her flex points by the beginning of April.
“Personally, I run out of my flex points really fast,” she said. “I guess we are due for a little increase, especially because prices are rising, like Starbucks, all the prices have risen a ton.”
Other students suggested that meal plans offer greater flexibility. Sophomores, juniors and seniors are eligible to change their meal plan to have 20 fewer dining hall swipes in exchange for a $245 credit each semester. Freshmen, however, cannot change their meal plan, and only seniors can opt for a meal plan with fewer than 230 meal swipes.
“I think students get enough flex points, but I wish that you could convert some of your dining hall swipes into flex points,” sophomore Ava Schroeder said.
Freshman Lila Griesemer expressed a similar desire.
“I would not mind a few more flex points in exchange for some of the dining hall swipes because I have way too many,” Griesemer said.
