NSU - Fresh Ideas Questions.pdf
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- Attached to
- Dining Service Operations for SDBOR Institutions
- Solicitation number
- 26RFP-SDBOR07142026
- Issued by
- Kingsbury County, South Dakota
About this file
This is a Fresh Ideas Information & Data Request document prepared by Northern State University (NSU) in response to a comprehensive dining services solicitation issued by the South Dakota Board of Regents (SDBOR) for six public universities and two university centers. The document provides detailed operational and financial data for NSU's dining program to inform prospective vendors' proposals. NSU projects Fall 2026 meal plan enrollment of 641 students across six plan types, with total FY27 costs ranging from $1,681 to $2,431 per plan. All students enrolled in at least six on-campus credit hours are required to live in university housing and maintain a meal plan for their first two years, subject to waiver exceptions under SDBOR Policy 3.7.1. The university operates 224 service days annually with dining locations including Wolves Den, Einstein Bros Bagels, The Grid Market/Create with Love, and Just Baked. Of the 88 international students on campus, 61 maintain meal plans (69 percent); of 419 athletes, 235 maintain meal plans (56 percent). Faculty and staff may purchase designated plans at $210 including $200 flex dollars and 16 meal swipes. NSU is open to discussions regarding expanded summer and academic break operations, preboard services for early-arriving athletes and orientation leaders beginning August 1, and modified operating hours to meet student needs.
Flex dollars are subject to sales tax at point of sale and are taxed separately by the food service provider; vendors must incorporate applicable South Dakota sales tax rates (ranging from 6.2 to 8.7 percent depending on location) into final pricing, with all tax assumptions clearly documented. FY26 sales history shows combined dining location revenue of approximately $530,909 in cash/credit sales and $858,249 in flex/Thunder Bucks transactions, with 52,622 meal swipes at Wolves Den. The university operates under a shared RIS Transact POS system license administered by NSU and SDSU with an FY26 charge-back of $869.86; current register equipment includes NCR models with two units scheduled for replacement in October. The contractor holds the Einstein Bros franchise agreement and leases the Just Baked machine, while all general equipment and smallwares belong to the university. NSU does not anticipate significant equipment changes and requires no amortization period exceeding five years, with full recovery of proposed investments due by June 30, 2032. Current hourly associates are not represented by a collective bargaining agreement, and information regarding current vendor donations, scholarships, and commissions has not been disclosed to protect procurement integrity; vendors should propose value-added services and financial contributions as part of their responses.
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FRESH IDEAS INFORMATION & DATA REQUEST
NORTHERN STATE UNIVERSITY
Meal Plans
1. Please provide Fall 2026 projected meal plan enrollment by plan.
Meal Plan FY27 Cost Flex Included # of Meal Plans Sold
FA 26* FA 25
All Access & 200 Flex $ 2,431 $ 200 157 121 Faculty & Staff $ 210 $ 210 24 22 Wolf Pack 185 & 250 Flex $ 2,359 $ 250 81 57 All DCB $ 1,681 $ 1,681 226 219 Wolf Pack 160 & 250 Flex $ 2,193 $ 250 111 105 Jr./Sr. All Flex $ 600 $ 600 42 45
TOTAL 641 569
*9/01/26
2. Which students are required to have meal plans? Which meal plans are they required to have?
Under SDBOR Policy 3.7.1, students enrolled at a university in at least six on-campus credit hours are required to live in university housing during the first two years following their high school graduation.
Students subject to the on-campus housing requirement are required to have a meal plan. Institutions may grant waiver exceptions to the housing and meal plan requirements in accordance with the waiver provisions of the policy.
3. If a meal exchange or meal equivalency is offered, please provide the details. (i.e., how many are allowed per week, which locations accept them, during what times, and what they get for a swipe or the dollar value of the equivalency).
Meal exchange / equivalency mostly accounted for under the flex programs, with flex dollars identified within plan. Flex dollars are accepted at all locations when open. Flex purchases are recorded at actual transaction value. Students are allowed to use a meal swipe/meal equivalency. They are allowed to have one exchange meal per week.
4. What is the % (or number) of international students on campus? How many are on a meal plan?
88 international students, 61 with meal plans, equals 69%
5. What is the % (or number) of athletes on campus? How many are on a meal plan?
419 athletes, 235 with meal plans, equal to 56%
6. Are there designated faculty/staff meal plans, and, if so, please provide details.
Cost $210 include $200 Flex Dollars + 16 Meal Swipes. Roll from Fall to Spring; expires at the end of spring semester.
7. Meal Plan Taxability Are meal plans taxed? If so, what is the tax rate?
If flex dollars are taxed, are they taxed at the point of sale when redeemed or up front in the total meal plan cost? What is the tax rate?
During the last procurement process, there was confusion regarding the treatment of sales tax within the pricing submitted by respondents. To avoid a similar issue, all pricing provided in proposals should include any applicable sales tax and be presented as the final price that would be charged to students. The universities will not add sales tax to the prices proposed by the vendor. Therefore, vendors must clearly identify any sales tax assumptions included in their pricing and specify their responsibility for calculating and remitting applicable taxes. All tax-related assumptions should be clearly documented to ensure proposals can be evaluated on a consistent basis and that the resulting agreement accurately reflects the parties' intent. For clarity, Flex Dollars are subject to sales tax at the point of sale and are taxed separately by the food service provider when purchases are made. Below are the current sales tax rates applicable at NSU, as defined by the South Dakota Department of Revenue. Please note that tax rates are subject to change based on state and local tax decisions. It is the vendor's responsibility to remain informed of and comply with the applicable tax requirements for the location(s) included in its proposal and to incorporate any applicable taxes into its proposed pricing
1. State + municipal = 6.2%
2. State + Municipal + Municipal gross = 7.2%
3. State + municipal + tourism = 7.7%
4. State + municipal + municipal gross + tourism = 8.7%
8. Daily Rates
What are your current daily rates for each plan?
Do your daily rates include flex dollars?
The current agreement includes meal-plan pricing and other financial arrangements related to meal plan revenue. The campuses are not requiring proposers to replicate the current pricing structure. Proposers should clearly identify their proposed meal-plan pricing methodology, including any daily rates, commissions, fees, revenue-sharing arrangements, or retained revenue components included in their proposal.
Sales History
9. Please provide a two-year sales history (Fall and Spring combined) for each dining location by tender.
Please specify if the sales figures include tax. (Grid Market and Create with Love combined POS)
FY26 (2025-2026)
Dining Location Sales: Cash/ Sales:
# of Dining Hall Meal Swipes
# of Meal Exchange Swipes
Credit/Debit Flex /Thunder Bucks
Wolves Den $19,537 $176,806 52,622
Einstein Bros Bagels $85,897 $308,247 135 The Grid Market / Create with Love $14,473 $327,380 113
Just Baked $96 $5,816 N/A
FY25 (2024-2025)
Dining Location Sales: Cash/ Sales:
# of Dining Hall Meal Swipes
# of Meal Exchange Swipes
Credit/Debit Flex /Thunder Bucks
Wolves Den $20,729 $140,280 59,323
Einstein Bros Bagels $89,052 $309,174
The Grid Market / Create with Love $15,138 $315,927
1,165 Just Baked N/A N/A N/A
10. Operating Days & Hours:
What are the board operating days by semester?
Meal plans are currently calculated at 224 service days.
Please confirm the hours below from the RFP are the current operating hours. Are these the desired hours?
We are open to discussions as long as meet student needs.
Are any locations open during the summer? If so, please provide the summer operating days and hours.
Not currently open, interested in exploring.
Do any locations on campus remain open during academic breaks or holidays? If yes, please provide which remain open and the days and hours of operation of each location.
Not currently open.
11. Please provide the current summer conference and camp rates.
The current agreement includes meal-plan pricing and other financial arrangements related to meal plan revenue. The campuses are not requiring proposers to replicate the current pricing structure.
Proposers should clearly identify their proposed meal-plan pricing methodology, including any daily rates, commissions, fees, revenue-sharing arrangements, or retained revenue components included in their proposal.
12. Please provide your preboard service days, rate and total preboard spending for the last two years.
(Preboard includes any meal expenditures before the board plan start date, for example, student-athletes, orientation leaders, new student orientation, etc.)
Early arrivals for athletics and key fall orientation activities begin August 1. Services provided to these early-arrival populations are contracted at the established camp and conference rates. Given the importance and recurring nature of these key engagements, proposers are requested to provide their best available offer for these services as part of their proposal.
13. Please provide Spring 2026 and Fall 2026 retail menus and pricing for Created with Love.
Menu is available online.
14. For Created with Love, please share the rotating concepts for the past 12 months.
Current rotation is Asian inspired rice bowls.
15. Please provide 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 concessions menu and pricing.
16. Please provide the dining hall door rates, as applicable:
The current agreement includes meal-plan pricing and other financial arrangements related to meal plan revenue. The campuses are not requiring proposers to replicate the current pricing structure.
Proposers should clearly identify their proposed meal-plan pricing methodology, including any daily rates, commissions, fees, revenue-sharing arrangements, or retained revenue components included in their proposal.
Financials
17. Would you consider a longer amortization period than the five years outlined in the RFP?
No. The Board's intent for this procurement is that any proposed investment, including the payoff of existing unamortized investment balances, be fully recovered within the initial five-year contract term.
Respondents should structure their proposals accordingly and should not assume amortization beyond June 30, 2032.
18. Are the current hourly associates represented by a CBA (collective bargaining agreement)?
No.
19. Student Employees How many students work in the dining program?
Are students on the university payroll (work study) or the current vendor payroll?
What is the average wage for student workers in dining services?
The requested human resources and employee information is not available to the University. The employees are employed by the current dining services contractor, and these records are maintained by that contractor. Therefore, the University is unable to provide the requested information.
Annual Donations & Commissions
20. Please provide any in-kind or annual donations you receive from your current vendor (for example, catering funds, scholarships, complimentary meal plans for RAs, faculty/staff, etc.). Which ones would you like to see continued?
The institutions currently benefit from various vendor-supported programs and investments that may differ by campus and contract year – however information regarding contributions, scholarships, sponsorships, capital investments, donations, and other in-kind support provided under the current agreement will not be disclosed. Proposers should describe any value-added services, financial
Wolf Dog Comb 11.00$ Wolf Dog 6.00$ Pizza Combo 9.00$ Thunder Dog 9.00$ Popcorn Combo 9.00$ Nachos 5.00$ Walking Taco Combo 14.00$ Thunder Nachos 8.00$ Thunder Nacho Combo 13.00$ Pizza Slice (Cheese or Pepperoni) 5.00$ Souvenir Soda 6.00$ Walking Taco 9.00$ Souvenir Soda Refill 4.00$ Cheese Curds 7.00$ Powerade 4.00$ Popcorn 5.00$ Dasani Bottled Water 4.00$ Pretzel w/ Cheese 6.00$ Hot Chocolate 4.00$ Nachos 5.00$ Coffee 4.00$ Candy 5.00$ contributions, scholarships, capital commitments, sponsorships, or other benefits they are proposing as part of their response.
21. Beyond the Wolves Attacking Hunger annual meal swipe donations, do you have any specific requests for new in-kind or annual donation support?
The institutions currently benefit from various vendor-supported programs and investments that may differ by campus and contract year – however information regarding contributions, scholarships, sponsorships, capital investments, donations, and other in-kind support provided under the current agreement will not be disclosed. Proposers should describe any value-added services, financial contributions, scholarships, capital commitments, sponsorships, or other benefits they are proposing as part of their response.
22. Do you receive commissions (e.g. catering, retail, concessions/alcohol)? If so, please provide the commission structure and the total commission dollar amount received in each of the past two (2) years.
The current agreement includes meal-plan pricing and other financial arrangements related to meal plan revenue. The campuses are not requiring proposers to replicate the current pricing structure.
Proposers should clearly identify their proposed meal-plan pricing methodology, including any daily rates, commissions, fees, revenue-sharing arrangements, or retained revenue components included in their proposal.
Equipment & Licensing
23. Card Access System/POS
Who owns the card access system/POS for dining?
Operate under the shared RIS Transact license and administer by NSU and SDSU. Dining personnel have reports and operational access and use.
Please provide the make, model, and date of purchase of the current Access & POS systems.
Currently have 3 registers in dining locations, in addition we have 14 concession readers. 2 Registers are end of life, replacing in October.
Register model – NCR CX7 (1) (Replacing) and NCR XR5 (2) Concession – Touch Dynamic QK10
How much is the annual fee, and who pays for it?
Dining is charged back a user prorated rate based on issued license and use. FY26 license charge of $869.86
24. Who holds the franchise agreement for Einsteins, the contractor or the school?
Contractor has a franchise agreement and contract.
25. Who owns the Just Baked machine, the contractor or the school?
The machine is leased to Sodexo.
26. Please list the equipment, small equipment, and smallwares the incumbent will be taking from the premises if they do not retain the account.
General equipment and small wares belong to the University. We do not anticipate a significant change in available equipment or small wares belonging to the University.
Other
27. Please provide floor plans for all dining venues on campus. CAD or PDF file preferred.
PDFs will be provided via email to offerors present during the pre-submission conference call.
28. Who is on the RFP dining selection committee? Who is the key decision maker(s)?
The identities of evaluation committee members will not be disclosed during the procurement process.
Respondents should direct all questions and communications through the designated procurement contact identified in the RFP.
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