Incoming freshmen and transfer students have likely heard of the terms “Dining Dollars” and “Rocky Bucks” used to describe the University’s dining plans. But for many upperclassmen, these terms are foreign.
On April 25, 2024, the University’s daily email newsletter, @rochester, announced a change to the dining plans. The campus currency formerly known as “Declining Dollars” or “Declining” would be renamed to “Dining Dollars,” and the currency formerly known as “URos” would become known as “Rocky Bucks.”
The newsletter provided a link to a University news article explaining the change. The article stated that although these new currencies are nearly identical to their former counterparts, Rocky Bucks will be accepted by many more vendors than before, including off-campus.
According to interim dean of students Anne-Marie Algier, “These changes are designed to give students more control over how they spend their money and reduce confusion about their payment options. Whereas Dining Dollars can only be spent at campus dining facilities and on convenience food items, Rocky Bucks are accepted by a larger network of dining, food, and retail options on campus and in College Town.”
On campus, Rocky Bucks will be accepted at all dining locations, the Campus Mail Center, printer and copier services, vending machines, and ticket sales, according to the dining website. At College Town they will be accepted at Joy Mart, Primohoagies, Taichi Bubble Tea, and Barnes and Noble. These stores will provide special discounts and deals when customers make purchases with Rocky Bucks.
Students within Residential Group 4 at the River Campus as well as juniors and seniors at Eastman are able to select the C2 dining plan including Dining Dollars and $500 Rocky Bucks. All students, regardless of their chosen meal plan, are able to add Rocky Bucks to their account through the kiosk in the back of Susan B. Anthony Hall. In addition, students and parents can add Rocky Bucks and Dining Dollars to the student’s account through learn.rochester.edu.
