Subject: [DormCon] Discuss Housing Rates Structure with HRS, Food Resources, Laundry!

From: "Rebecca Lizarde" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2023 22:13:54 +0000

tl;dr:

  *   HRS is considering future changes to the housing price structure - come to our GBM on Thursday, October 26 at 7:30PM in Next House to learn more and give your feedback. RSVP here<https://forms.gle/amQZryUUr5UiWcsq9>!

  *   See food and dining hall related resources<https://linktr.ee/foodatmit> for ALL students below and email [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]> with any questions

  *   Fill out the dining feedback form after you eat on campus: http://bit.ly/dining23

  *   Report laundry-related issues through the CSC GO app

  *   Reach out to [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]> if you have concerns about interactions with house teams or HRS employees, or report them to DSL through hotline.mit.edu<http://hotline.mit.edu>

Hello, dorm resident! 🦈

We’re DormCon, the student government organization that presides over MIT’s undergraduate dorms. We wanted to share important information about potential changes to housing rates, as well as resources around food on campus and laundry, so read on!

Invitation to Discuss Housing Rates from the DormCon Housing Chairs

We are Jordan and Cameron, your DormCon Housing Chairs for this academic year. We’re here to help you if you’re experiencing difficulties with rooming, housing, or facilities in your dorm. You can always email us at [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>.

Housing and Residential Services is currently exploring the idea of changing the pricing structure for undergraduate housing in order to decrease the impact of price on students’ choice of dorm. HRS is considering eliminating the price differences between room types and dorm tiers by moving to one price for all rooms in undergraduate housing. This change, if implemented, would NOT be immediate. We want your feedback on this potential change, and will have HRS administration present at our next General Body Meeting in Next House on Thursday, October 26 at 7:30PM. Come to that meeting to hear their presentation and give them direct feedback. If you can’t make it, meeting minutes will be available here<https://dormcon.mit.edu/about/meetings>, and you can also email us your thoughts or write them in the RSVP form below!

If you are planning to attend, please RSVP here so we can ensure we have enough dinner for everyone: https://forms.gle/amQZryUUr5UiWcsq9.

Resources from the DormCon Dining Chairs

We are your DormCon Dining Chairs, Tyra and Ananda. We’re here as a point of contact on anything related to food and dining at MIT. We meet with admin from the Division of Student Life (DSL) every week, serving as an interface between students and admin. Let us know your thoughts about dining; whether it be the meal plan system, food trucks, dining hall quality, food insecurity, or anything in between, we will bring it forward! You can reach us at [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>.

Check out our list of resources to find food and groceries around campus at the bottom of this email! Some highlights include:

Free Delivery from Daily Table. The Daily Table, a community grocery store in Central Square, has partnered with the DSL to offer on-campus students a free delivery option for their groceries. Use the code 0923MIT12 online for free delivery through this semester. For any questions, please email [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>.

If you need Food or Support… Undergraduate students who wish to receive donated meal swipes can use the SwipeShare program<https://mycard.mit.edu/student/local_donation_retrieve.php> or talk to someone in Student Support Services<https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3>. Students on a meal plan can donate meal swipes online to help other students by completing this form<https://mycard.mit.edu/student/local_donate.php>.

If you have questions…

  *   Email us! [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>

  *   Fill out feedback for dining halls and restaurants on campus: http://bit.ly/dining23

  *   If you have dietary restrictions or allergies and want help navigating the meal plan, Bon Appetit’s onsite dietitian is excited to work with you! You can reach out to Pina here: [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>

  *   For general questions concerning food and dining, you can reach out to MIT Dining administration: [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>

  *   Give feedback to your house dining chairs or dorm student government.

  *   Get to know the dining staff in your dorm! They’re generally lovely people and if they can have a better sense of the community's dining desires, they can help make it happen.

Laundry

If a laundry machine is broken, please report it through the CSC GO app. Laundry does NOT use Atlas service requests. Scan the machine’s tag with your phone, then tap “Request Service”. You can also do this by tapping “Request Service” under the “More” tab at the bottom of the app.

Other Reminders

If you have a concern related to interactions with your house team or employees in your dorm that you want to report, you can use hotline.mit.edu<http://hotline.mit.edu> for anonymous reporting or reach out to DormCon for help. As always, you can reach out to us at [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]> if you have any questions, concerns, or comments.

All dorm residents (that’s you!) are invited to attend our General Body Meetings on alternate Thursdays 7:30-9:00 PM; dates and locations<https://dormcon.mit.edu/about/meetings/> below), where you can also get free dinner! Join the dormcon-announce mailing list<https://groups.mit.edu/webmoira/list/dormcon-announce> to receive agendas, updates, and reminders.

Date

Hosting Dorm

October 26, 2023

Next

November 9, 2023

McCormick

November 30, 2022

Random

Take care,

Mitali Chowdhury 🦈

President

Rebecca Lizarde 🦈

Vice President

Food + Dining Resources (you can also find these at https://linktr.ee/foodatmit)

  *   General List of Food + Financial Resources @ MIT<https://doingwell.mit.edu/foodandfinancial/> to ensure no student goes hungry due to lack of money or resources, and that students feel comfortable asking for help<https://doingwell.mit.edu/support-3/> when they need it.

  *   MIT Food & Grocery Map<https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?ll=42.35466204810238%2C-71.0921191231349&z=14&utm_source=Publicate&utm_medium=email&utm_content=mit-food-amp-grocery-map-google-my-maps&utm_campaign=%5BDRAFT%5D%20FSAT%20Newsletter&mid=1i0YNzpQzO2Zou13n9ZahvjL1L7feLFA5>: Shows locations to find food on and around campus, including dining halls, grocery stores, and restaurants. We have also compiled some stores relevant to specific cultural groups here<http://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1xiTN5I9JYbA6Wae06DqKC6IqOwTOjwE&ll=42.3483113461518%2C-71.12674994999999&z=11>.

  *   MIT Grocery Store Shuttles<https://web.mit.edu/facilities/transportation/shuttles/grocery.html>: Free shuttles to Costco, Target, Daily Table, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s.

  *   Swipeshare Information + Form<https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3/money-food-resources/food-resources>: A program for meal plan users to donate unused meal swipes. If you are having trouble accessing food for any reason, you can request swipes here! If a lack of resources is affecting your ability to get enough food, please email Student Support Services<https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3>.

  *   W20 (Student Center) Food Locations<https://studentlife.mit.edu/dining/dining-locations>: Check out these restaurants in the Stud, located on the first and second floors! The LaunchPad, on the second floor, is by non-profit food business incubator CommonWealth Kitchen.

  *   BibimBox<https://studentlife.mit.edu/dining/dining-locations/bibimbox>

  *   Carolicious<https://studentlife.mit.edu/dining/dining-locations/carolicious>

  *   Dunkin'<https://studentlife.mit.edu/dining/dining-locations/dunkin>

  *   Tawakal Halal Café<https://studentlife.mit.edu/tawakal-halal-caf%C3%A9>

  *   TeaDo<https://studentlife.mit.edu/teado>

  *   Food trucks<https://studentlife.mit.edu/food-trucks>: Every Wednesday, there is a rotation of food trucks in the outfinite.

  *   Daily Table<https://dailytable.org/>: A low cost grocery store in Central Square that accepts SNAP/EBT.  Use the code 0923MIT12 with a $20 minimum online purchase at Daily Table and receive free delivery to your on-campus location. Valid from 9/1/23 to 12/31/23 for online orders only, it cannot be used in-store.

  *   Undergraduate Emergency Support Fund Request Form<https://studentlife.mit.edu/webforms/undergraduate-emergency-support-fund-request-form>: Request funds to obtain enough food for regular meals and cover “unforeseen, essential expenses.”

  *   Apply for SNAP benefits (food stamps)<https://www.mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-snap-benefits-food-stamps>: Application for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

  *   Too Good To Go<https://toogoodtogo.com/en-us/consumer>: An app created to provide reduced cost food from restaurants and grocery stores while preventing food waste.