By ADRIANA TJADER
University of Puget Sound alum, Katherine Kittlitz (‘25), has filed a lawsuit against the University over the previous Dining Dollars meal plan. The lawsuit alleges the University violated two Washington state laws by requiring students to purchase pre-paid meal plans that expired at the end of each academic year. Under this system, any unused funds were absorbed by the school each May rather than remaining in students’ accounts.
According to the filings, Puget Sound ID cards are loaded with dining dollars that function similarly to gift cards. The plaintiff alleges that the University’s former meal plan violated Washington’s Consumer Protection Act, which prohibits deceptive business practices and the state’s Gift Certificate Law. The law generally prohibits purchased gift cards and certificates from expiring and from being subject to inactivity fees when used. The suit is seeking for the University to return all assets to students, in addition to other relief fees.
In April 2026, Puget Sound’s website published an announcement “introducing updates to the campus meal plan program for the 2026–2027 academic year, designed to provide more consistent access to meals, greater flexibility, and clearer value for students and families.” The timing of this is notable, as the University published this just one month before Kittlitz filed the lawsuit alleging the University violated state law. The suit, filed in May 2026, only pertains to the previous dining-dollar model, not the current plan that is offered to students with meal swipes and Flex Cash for the 2026-2027 academic year.
The Trail reached out to Kittlitz for comment, but did not receive a response.
The University stated via its website, “The University of Puget Sound is deeply committed to the support and well-being of our students and to administering university programs—including dining services—in a lawful manner. The University disputes the complaint allegations and will respond through the legal process. Because this matter is pending litigation, the University will not comment further at this time.”
The Trail followed up on Sep. 21, and the University provided the same statement, saying that there are no new updates at this time. The Trail reached out to Dining and Events services for comment and did not receive a response by the time we published.
The dispute has prompted students to reflect on their experiences with the new meal plan. Sophomore Cameron Bingham (‘29) said the current meal swipe system has made them more hesitant to purchase food when they are hungry, especially when swiping for a smaller item. “I feel more pressured to buy more when I’m at the S.U.B,” Bingham says. “I was like, if I don’t, then all of my swipes will just be gone in the next week. And I also kind of find myself waiting to eat or holding back because I don’t want to go spend a whole swipe on a snack or something like that.”
Bingham said he would have preferred the dining dollars system if unused funds had rolled over between weeks, allowing students greater flexibility in how they spent what they had paid for.
Junior Hazel Karen Snow (‘28) said she preferred the former dining dollars system but views the current plan as a potential improvement. “I think I did prefer the dining dollars, but I don’t mind the change. I think that if the attempt is at some sort of progress, we should be receptive to that,” Snow said. However, she acknowledges that it places additional responsibility on students, particularly for those with allergies or dietary restrictions. “I’m just limited a lot more now, so I have to be more creative, which puts more work on the students rather than the University.”
On the other hand, the current meal plan involving Flex Cash is the only meal plan that students like freshman Kai Kopplin (‘30) have been exposed to. “I’m on Meal Plan B, which is the second lowest. It’s kind of the average one. And I think it’s fine for me. I’m a student athlete. I get two meals a day, and if I need something, I could use Flex Cash. I have enough Flex Cash because I get enough out of my two meal swipes per day, but it feels like I’m not going hungry in a major part of the day,” says Kopplin.
Kopplin reports hearing some discussion about the meal plan, but not necessarily recognizing it as a significant campus-wide issue. “I’ve heard some things about people complaining about certain things, but not anything that big in particular. Like, some people are just hungrier than others, I would say. That kind of fluctuates, but I feel like there’s always some complaining of some sort.”
The outcome of the lawsuit and any ensuing meal plan changes will have direct implications for most Puget Sound students. Regardless of one’s experience with the former meal plan, or only knowing the current one, the issue prompts the question of how student payments are managed and how changes to such essential services are communicated and determined.