DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS APPOINTS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DINING SERVICES

After conducting a comprehensive national search, the Division of Student Affairs has named Michael White as Executive Director of Dining Services effective November 4, 2022.

White holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from UConn and a Master of Arts in Industrial Organizational Psychology from the University of New Haven.  In his 26^th year as a UConn employee, he brings an impressive base of UConn experience to this position, including serving as Interim Senior Associate Director of Dining Services for the past 1.5 years. Prior to that he served as the Associate Director of Dining Services, an Area Manager, General Manager of Retail Operations and Student Program Coordinator. He started out in 1994 as a student worker washing pots at Shippee Dining Hall and progressed through the ranks which allowed him to gain a thorough understanding of the role every level of Dining Services plays in delivering a quality experience to all customers.

In addition to leading various aspects of Dining Services, White also held the UCPEA roles of President from 2015 – 2021 and First Vice President of Collective Bargaining from 2009 – 2015. In these positions he was a SEBAC representative, member of the Health Cost Containment Committee, and the Vendor Advisory Committee. He also sits on myriad UConn committees including Strategic Visioning, Covid-19 Medical Services Workgroup, Vice Provost’s Committee on Food Insecurity, University Senate, and the Access & Accommodations Committee.

Mike lives in Norwich, CT with his wife Jill (also a UConn alum ‘97). He has twin daughters Teagan and Cassidy who attend UConn-Avery Point. Teagan is majoring in Psychology and Cassidy is majoring in Speech and Language Pathology.

The Division of Student Affairs appreciates the work of the search committee chaired by Tracey Roy (Interim Executive Director of Dining Services), administered by Samantha Courtois (Dining Services) and composed of David Clokey (Assistant Vice President, Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs), Cheryl Radzvilowicz (Environmental Health & Safety), Padma Srimatkandada (Student Affairs Information Technology), and Isaac Barber (Director, Student Union).

Much thanks is given to Dining Services staff members who stepped up to fill interim roles while the search was being conducted including Tracey Roy as Interim Executive Director, Rob Landolphi as Associate Director of Residential Dining, and White as Interim Senior Associate Director. Also appreciated is the outstanding work of all the Dining Services staff who stepped up during this time of transition under Tracey’s interim leadership and continued to produce high-quality services that Dining is known for. 

UConn dining named a top power player

LISA MASSICOTTE

Chronicle Staff Writer

STORRS — Once again, the University of Connecticut Department of Dining Services has been recognized in Food Management magazine’s Top 25 College Dining Power Players.

UConn dining leaders are taking this recognition as an opportunity to show dining services does far more than just cook for students.

“We’re more than just dining services. Not only do we feed the students, we also take part in working with different departments to educate the students,” said UConn Associate Director for Culinary Development and Residential Dining Robert Landolphi.

Food Management magazine is a go-to resource for colleges and universities around the country to obtain and share information on campus dining trends, ideas and management strategies.

Read more of this article at https://thechronicle.com/stories/20210609DINING.php

C. Dennis Piece, who most recently served as the Executive Director of Dining Services, announced his retirement in April.  Pierce has provided UConn with 34 years of devoted service and he will be greatly missed by students and colleagues alike.

A talented leader and accomplished food service administrator, his vision and expertise in college dining services has driven notable enterprise growth in resident board operations, retail, and the catering service sectors. His achievements have been featured in Food Service Director, Food Management, and Restaurant & Institutions magazines. He currently writes a column in Neighbor’s, a local regional paper, called, From the Ground Up, Buying Local in Connecticut, for which he has received two Connecticut Journalism awards. He has held the position of the President of the National Association of College & University Association, and has been the recipient of the Association’s Ted Minah award, the most prestigious recognition that the association offers. Topping off his foodservice career, Dennis received the Silver Plate Award for the College & University sector, Class of 2018, by the International Food Manufacturer’s Association.

Dennis’ attention to detail, while keeping the broader picture in mind, has been invaluable. His willingness to put in extra time and effort to help UConn meet the varied needs of students has demonstrated a commitment to excellence that we have come to depend upon.

A national search will be conducted in the fall to refill the Executive Director of Dining Services position.

The UConn Creamery has produced some new cheese flavors that are now available for sale at the Dairy Bar. There are also new flavors of queso (now known as Old Farm Lane Fresh Cheese).

The Storrs Original Farmstead Jack is made with fresh UConn milk and a unique mix of cultures that produce a buttery masterpiece that is dense and creamy with a sweet, tangy, and slightly sharp finish.

The 1881 Reserve is hand-selected blocks of Storrs Original Farmstead Jack that are further matured to achieve their full potential. As a result, 1881 is more complex; rich, and nutty with notes of fruit.

Current flavors of Old Farm Lane Fresh cheese include roasted bell pepper, original, diced green chili, black olive, bacon, chipotle, pepperoni, and cracked black pepper.

And don’t forget Juustoleipa! This Finland-style “bread cheese” is available in plain, jalapeno, and pepperoni.

Open for online ordering with curbside pick-up Wednesday-Sunday from 11am-5pm; orders must be placed by 4:30pm. Customers should expect a minimum 30-minute wait for their order to be prepared.

Congrats to seniors Danielle Costa & Giuliana Marchetti! Their pizza creations for our first Senior Slice were selected out of six finalists. Voting was open to the entire UConn community during the week of March 5th-12th!

Both winners will receive a pizza party pack to share their creation with friends. USM, North and McMahon will be serving the slices on March 24th during lunch and dinner.

• Danielle Costa – Mac ‘n Cheese (base) with pulled pork, onions, peppers, cheddar cheese, bbq sauce & oregano
  
• Giuliana Marchetti – Spicy red sauce (base) with vegan meatball, vegan Italian sausage, spinach, peppers, vegan slice Chao cheese, pesto (nut/cheese free) & oregano

The staff at McMahon Dining Hall have chosen six finalists for the inaugural Senior Slice. Congrats to the finalists! Voting is open until the end of the day on March 12th, 2021.

Vote here dining.uconn.edu/senior-slice

Non-Vegan Pizza Finalists

• Sophia Arruda – Spicy red sauce (base) with capicola, onions, roasted poblanos, pineapple, gouda, oregano & thyme
• Daniella Costa – Mac n Cheese (base) with pulled pork, onions, peppers, cheddar cheese, bbq sauce & oregano
• Sophia Arruda – Queso (base) with pulled chicken, jalapeno, corn, black beans, Monterey Jack cheese, pepper jack cheese, oregano & cilantro

Vegan Pizza Finalists

• Giuliana Marchetti – Spicy red sauce (base) with vegan meatball, vegan Italian sausage, spinach, peppers, vegan slice Chao cheese, pesto (nut/cheese free) & oregano
• Julia Roemer – Traditional red sauce (base) with eggplant, tomatoes, broccoli, spinach, basil & oregano
• Frank Magnante – Garlic oil (base) with eggplant, spinach, broccoli, onions, pesto (nut/cheese free) & oregano

Dining Services is launching Senior Slice!

Like Senior Scoop, we are looking to make this a fun and tasty UConn tradition for the senior class.

Members of the Class of 2021 can build and submit their favorite kinds of vegan and non-vegan pizzas.

Dining Services will then select a few finalist pizzas for seniors to vote on. The winning vegan and non-vegan pizza will be served at McMahon, North, and USM this spring. Stay tuned, more locations may be added!

More than one idea can be submitted. Please submit your ideas by the end of the day on February 28th:  https://dining.uconn.edu/senior-slice/

Questions: Contact DDSMarketing@uconn.edu

If you were on campus this semester and went to the dining halls and/or our retail locations, check your email for our biannual survey. We appreciate your time and feedback. This brief survey will help us make adjustments for the spring semester.

Read the full article from The Daily Campus here.

The UConn Bakery (Not Just Desserts) has launched two online stores on the UConn Dining Services website. One store is for the bakery’s standard cakes and baked goods and the other store is for the annual Thanksgiving Pie & Baked Goods sale.

Items in the Bakery online store include: birthday/occasion cakes (10”, half sheet & full sheet), 10” gourmet chocolate chip cookies, and gluten-free cakes/baked goods. Students and staff are welcome to place orders, pay with Husky Bucks, and pick up at the C-Store or Bakery.

Items in the Thanksgiving store include: Pies, cheesecake, cookies, breads, pumpkin whoopie pies, gluten-free pies/cheesecake. Thanksgiving orders must be received by 4:00pm on Wednesday, November 11, 2020, and all orders have to be picked up at the Bakery on Wednesday, November 25th. Orders cannot be picked up prior to the 25th.

At this time the Bakery is not able to do shipments or deliveries to offices/student rooms.

The campus community and public are welcome to start placing orders.

You can find access to both stores here: dining.uconn.edu/bakery