THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 27, 1995 TAG: 9508270075
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 130 lines
When students start class at Old Dominion University Monday, the course bulletin won't be the only smorgasbord they'll have to choose from.
At the student center, they might sample moussaka one week, chicken fajitas the next, stir-fry another time.
And every day, they'll be able to eat pasta, deli sandwiches and Chick-fil-a fast food.
Welcome to the new and improved Webb Center cafeteria, run not by ODU, but by Aramark Inc., a food-service company based in Philadelphia.
The retooled menu at Webb Center illustrates a more fundamental business switch sweeping Virginia colleges: With a push from the state, more are ``privatizing,'' or contracting out, their operations to companies to save money and improve service.
State-supported universities in Virginia are contracting out $102 million worth of services to private businesses, according to a state study released last month. That, state officials estimate, has saved colleges roughly $6 million a year.
Across Virginia, students will return to school this week finding more operations in private hands:
George Mason University, acknowledged as the leader in privatization among state colleges, is paying Campus Hospitality $225,000 a year to manage its dorms. Administrators hope Campus Hospitality will spruce up the dorms - and boost occupancy rates.
This summer, Radford University turned over its health center to Collegiate Health Care after complaints from students. The university now promises quicker service and longer hours.
``Those things we do well we can do ourselves,'' said David F. Harnage, vice president for administration and finance at ODU.
``But there are other things it is best to have other people do for you. That's no different from any other business.''
Privatization has taken a sharply different cast in higher education than it has in the public schools.
In public schools, with the quality of education emerging as the key concern, cities from Hartford to Miami have tried privatizing academics, letting outside firms oversee their teachers.
In higher education, cost is the central issue, so privatization has focused on non-academic operations, like bookstores, dining halls, dormitories.
Universities traditionally have been slow to privatize because their leaders were ``not terribly business-minded,'' said William Eggers, director of the Reason Foundation's Privatization Center, a free-market think tank in Los Angeles. But with funding cuts and growing scrutiny of the ``fat'' in their budgets, he said, many have begun to try it.
Weston Statzer, a junior from Bristol, got his first look at the new Webb cafeteria last week. He was impressed.
``Last semester, it was gross,'' said Statzer, who was about to dig into a Chick-fil-a sandwich and fries. ``It had that high school cafeteria look. Now it looks real nice and clean.
``Before last semester, I was going across the street (Hampton Boulevard) to eat lunch. There's no reason to go there anymore.''
ODU and Aramark officials are counting on that type of attitude to spread like wildfire.
``We're bringing the food service of Old Dominion University into the '90s,'' said Steven Frank, Aramark's food services director at ODU. ``We're going to make this building a lot more crowded.''
The central cafeteria at Webb features a handful of stands, with bright marquees, including ``world's fare,'' ``Allegro pasta'' and ``cafe features'' - which Harnage describes as traditional meat-and-potatoes meals. Across the walkway is a small Chick-fil-a outlet.
Frank said the cost of a dinner - main entree, side dish, drink and dessert - is generally under $4.50, no more than it used to be.
Aramark also has taken over the food court near the front of Webb Center, bringing in franchises of Taco Bell, Freshens Yogurt and Pizza Hut.
Students' fees for room and board don't cover any of these meals, but Frank said the fare in dormitories - which is covered by the fees - also has been expanded.
The cafeteria-style lines at the dorms have been replaced with stations similar to those at Webb, offering deli sandwiches, ``grill'' items and ``traditional Mom meals.'' Meal fees were not affected by the change, Harnage said.
Harnage said the main benefit of the Aramark contract is improved service for students, but it also has the potential of earning ODU money if it brings more students to the food lines.
Other schools say they already have reaped financial gains with privatization.
Norfolk State University began contracting with Follett Co. last year to run its bookstore. Follett has guaranteed to return to NSU 10 percent of all revenues above $2 million - or at least $200,000 - annually for scholarships, Vice President Clementine Cone said.
At Radford, which estimates it will save $40,000 a year with its contract with Collegiate Health Care, the company has spent at least $150,000 of its own money to renovate the health center.
And Mason, which already has privatized about 50 operations, has forged a deal with Campus Hospitality to increase occupancy rates, which now stand at 80 percent. For every room occupied above the 80 percent level, the company will get $810 of the student's annual room fee and the university about $2,300.
`` `Profit' is not a dirty word,'' said Larry Czarda, the executive officer at Mason. ``You want the contractor to be in a position where he can make money. That's good for everyone.''
Not every university has had unqualified success with privatization. James Madison University contracted out its housekeeping service in the '80s, ``and it just didn't work as well,'' spokesman Fred Hilton said. ``You didn't have the same attachment to the institution.''
Other universities, such as Virginia Tech, with big staffs and long traditions, also have held out, said Donald J. Finley, associate director of the State Council of Higher Education. The council has prodded colleges to try privatization as part of their ``restructuring'' efforts.
``If you're at Tech and you've got a long history and you have many employees who are used to being Tech employees, you've got a major transformation,'' Finley said. ``You could irritate a lot of employees.''
But universities say they can ensure that their employees get a fair shot at staying on when the businesses change hands. At NSU, where Marriott/Thompson took over the food operations last year, all employees were guaranteed a six-month period to prove themselves, Cone said.
At ODU, 35 food employees have remained on the state payroll, to keep their retirement benefits, but Aramark is picking up their full tab, Harnage said.
``We get what the university needs - an improved food operation and employees who are treated fairly as well,'' he said. MEMO: Campus correspondent Joe Marino contributed to this report. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
BILL TIERNAN/Staff
Virginia Beach freshman Jenny Parker surveys the new choices at
ODU's Webb Center, including ``world's fare,'' ``Allegro pasta,''
and ``cafe features.'' Also new in the center are franchises of Taco
Bell, Freshens Yogurt, and Pizza Hut.
by CNB