BY ROB MENDONSA
Move over Interac and MasterCard, there’s a new superhero at the campus cafeterias, it has no service fees, is faster to use because it doesn’t require a PIN number and it can be easily replaced if lost or stolen. It’s the new “Dine With Us” card, Chartwells’ answer to all your payment prayers.
Conestoga’s cafeteria services, which are run by Chartwells, have introduced this new method of payment, according to Susan Dixon, Chartwells’ food service director, to help eliminate many of the problems that students were facing in paying for their meals.
Every student living at Conestoga College Residence should have received one of these cards in their mailbox. For everyone else a card can be picked up at any cafeteria cash register. Students must then sign up and load money onto it using any computer on campus or at home.
In addition, students’ parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles or anyone else who is worried about them not getting enough to eat can load money onto the card from anywhere. This is the perfect way to make sure students are not going without, plus relatives won’t have to worry about the student spending the money on beer, not that college students would do that.
“It’s great for faculty and students who are going from campus to campus because they are good across all colleges in Ontario which are run by Chartwells, which pretty much covers them all except for perhaps three,” said Dixon.
Each time the card is used, the amount of the purchase is deducted from the balance. The remaining balance is shown on the bottom of the receipt, which allows for easy reference and assures card holders they have enough for their next purchase.
“There is no downside to this card, if you lose your card you just go online and stop payment and then come in and I transfer the balance to a new card and you’re up and running immediately,” said Dixon.
There are also incentives for using the card each day. For example, on Mondays, card users will get a dollar off their coffee and Wednesdays are free small soup day. Also, if anyone loads their card before the end of October they will receive 10 per cent free on whatever they load onto their card.
The service has been active since Sept. 6 and has garnered lots of interest thus far.
“This is a great way for students to save 10 per cent off their food and be entered into a draw to win great prizes, including an iPad 2 or even cash prizes,” said Wendy Phillips, a food service worker in the Sanctuary cafeteria.
Staff can answer any questions you may have, or you can go online to www.dineoncampus.ca/conestoga.
What is Journalism?