The 网曝吃瓜 Board of Regents voted to approve a contract with Gourmet Services of Louisiana, Inc. to provide food services at the institution.
鈥淲e are very excited about this food service contract,鈥� 网曝吃瓜 President M. Christopher Brown II said. 鈥淭his will move us from a dining hall to a scattered retail concept, so students will have food available throughout the day.鈥�
President Brown said some of the scattered options brought to the flex area in the Carl M. Hill Student Center will include hamburgers, pizza and smoothies.
鈥淲e have tried very hard to make sure this is very student focused and that students were going to be very pleased with this contract,鈥� Dr. Elaine Farris, chairperson for the Board of Regents, said. 鈥淚鈥檓 very pleased that we finally got to a place where our students will have something they can be very proud of and they can be fed nutritious foods.鈥�
Douglas R. Allen II, vice president for finance and administration/chief financial officer, said Gourmet鈥檚 option of a scattered retail concept is what the University was looking for.
鈥淭hat itself allows the students more flexibility,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淲e wanted to get away from the traditional nine to five.鈥�
The contract includes over $1 million of incentives from Gourmet, including approximately $400,000 of capital renovations for the dining area and $250,000 in scholarships over the course of five years.
Some of the capital renovations include new furniture, new paint, new branding and new food supplies.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 going to be great for the students, faculty and staff,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a win-win. I鈥檓 greatly pleased with the outcome of the contract.鈥�
Michael Weaver Jr., student regent and Student Government Association president, said Gourmet was the best fit for the students and the University as a whole.
鈥淐ollege students stay up late, so it鈥檚 a really great thing for us to not have the restriction of having limited dining hours,鈥� Weaver said.
Gourmet will offer a wide variety of foods, he said.
鈥淲hether it鈥檚 for people who are vegetarian or vegan or who want to watch what they鈥檙e eating, we have those options,鈥� he said.
President Brown also noted that students will be allocated dollars per day and they can spend those dollars in any of the retail locations.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an amazing contract for an institution our size,鈥� President Brown said.
President Brown also noted that a potential discounted rate is in the works for state employees.
鈥淔or those who are not aware, the dining halls in the buildings that are adjacent to our campus have been closed in the most recent state budget,鈥� President Brown.
The contract includes a student advisory board focusing on the quality of food and menu options. Other perks include student employment, management training, guaranteed jobs for students at the end of graduation.
鈥淭he contract will also include a concept that will be launching called Bred Eats, which is similar to Uber Eats,鈥� President Brown said. 鈥淲hereas students, faculty, staff will be able to order online and a work-study student will deliver the food to them.鈥�