Cafeteria’s new ID card payment method has some flaws, many benefits

Last March, the cafeteria transitioned from a cash-based system to hybrid system in which students can use their ID cards to pay for meals.

Initially, many students and cafeteria staff members were unfamiliar with the new card system.

“When the cards first came in, it was so much slower because we had to get used to the new system,” said sophomore Alex Pan, who works as a volunteer cashier in the cafeteria.

Even after students gained more experience using the ID cards, they noticed that the time spent waiting in lines was not always shorter than the previous cash-only system. In some cases, the new cards seemed slower than earlier methods, as students might forget to bring their ID cards and opt to provide their student ID numbers instead to pay.

“When I have to input the numbers, sometimes I don’t hear them say it, so people have to wait longer,” Pan said.

Food service manager Pam Carlino also finds difficulty dealing with this issue.

“It gets really loud in the lines and sometimes we can’t hear and put the wrong number in, then we have to clear it out and put it in again,” Carlino said. “Sometimes we have to do that multiple times.”

According to Pan, students who don’t use the card certainly “break up the flow,” but it is not a common occurrence. Each lunch, Pan meets only two or three people, depending on which line he is working, who use their ID numbers. Pan said he sees about 60 said of the people use their ID cards and 40 percent students use cash during lunch.

In an effort to encourage more students to bring their ID cards, cafeteria staff have been reminding them about it over the daily morning announcements.

Despite its drawbacks, the new system provides other benefits for students. While it doesn’t necessarily speed up the lines, many students agree that paying with an ID card is more convenient than paying with cash.

The ID card system is easier for parents as well, since they do not have to periodically give students cash for lunch money.

“Parents can simply load money on the card online or just send a check or cash in and we can load it on,” Carlino said.

Additionally, students are allowed to carry a little bit of debt, so even if students forget to ask their parents for more money, they will still be able to purchase a meal.

“Overall, I think this is a great system that certainly makes buying lunch a lot easier for both parents and students,” Carlino said.