The Student Government Association is focusing its attention on creating a “wish list” of student recommendations to bring to the table when U of L considers amending its existing contract with Sodexo.

According to a presentation given by David Martin at the SGA senate meeting on Jan. 27, Sodexo is set lose about $4.5 million in its 10-year contract term, which will conclude in June 2018.

To help Sodexo make up this loss, U of L is considering increasing the price tag on commuter and resident meal plans.

In preparation for these negotiations, SGA is creating a list of food service improvements that they would like to see in exchange for higher priced meal plans.

“We can recommend anything we want,” said SGA President Monali Haldankar to the senate. However, she cautioned the senators to be “very very logical about what [they] put on this list.”

Over the past two weeks, each school council created a list of recommendations regarding campus dining. The council presidents compiled these recommendations into a “wish list” at the SGA executive board at a meeting on Feb. 3.

The resulting list is called the Meal Plan Increase Resolution.

Top priorities on the Meal Plan Increase Resolution include sustainability, new locations and policy changes in student meal plans.

A few examples of the recommendations include: a discount for students using reusable bottles at Sodexo locations, a recommended percentage of locally-sourced foods, more dining options on the north side of campus near the College of Education, extended hours of operation in the evening and a to-go option in Sodexo dining halls.

“It is worded in a way that these are recommendations in exchange for the meal plan increase, so they are going to negotiate and give us our top priorities,” said Services Vice President Morgan Cooksey to the senate.

“So we are going into it with the mindset that we’d be okay with that, but we are listing as many things as we can get so that if they want to give us everything we want, we could get all of them.”

After a second reading of the Meal Plan Increase Resolution, the senate voted to send the resolution back to the executive board for further editing and review.