As new and returning ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students settle in to campus life, they find ways to make ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ feel like the home away from home that it is.

They put up photos of family and friends in their residence, use a familiar laundry detergent, or seek comfort at Commons by munching a favorite childhood breakfast cereal.

If they can find it, that is. As the new academic year dawned, Cheryl Lacey, director of Dining Services, found it challenging to source several cereals.

But no need to panic. For one, Commons still has 32 options, including 24 in dispensers along the famed cereal wall. Second, the reigning student favorite, Lucky Charms, is still in stock. But Cracklin’ Oat Bran, Cookie Crisp, Kashi Heart to Heart, and even the runner-up favorite, Special K Red Berries, have been a little harder to source, says Lacey, who also had to secure a new vendor for milk.

“Those are going to be tough pills,� laughs Lacey. But she knows that for students, scarcity can be the mother of invention: She’s fully expecting new cereal ideas to pour forth.

Another supply-chain snag was revealed in a recent Napkin Board question: “Is the chili garlic sauce gone for good????” (The query warranted four question marks: Students need their sriracha!!!!)  A failed chili pepper harvest in northern Mexico is to blame for the shortage, explained Lacey via the online Napkin Board, signing the reply, “yours in pepper paucity.â€�

But the stress of supply chain issues wasn’t evident on a recent September day at lunch. The kitchen is the heart of the home, and Commons, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ beloved dining hall, is no exception. The chefs and staff serve more than 5,000 meals a day and the is the second-most popular ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ web page.

The scene: diners picking up clean, warm plates; dodging each other’s precariously heaping trays; waiting in line to get a taco or a burger or whatever is the most popular menu item of the meal; and Commons staff hurrying in and out of the swinging doors, taking back empty pans and bringing out full ones.

Trends for 2022 include ever-increasing interest in vegan items, says Lacey, so Commons is adding an impossible chili, a vegan taco filling, and a chickenless patty sandwich to the vegan bar.

, Lacey and her team remain vigilant about effective labeling and preventing cross-contamination. This fall, Dining Services will label foods containing sesame, (after allergens like milk, peanuts, and wheat).

Dining Services isn’t only thinking about what students eat, though: They also consider where students eat, routinely adjusting options for seating, adding smaller tables here and there, including high-top tables for two upstairs in the mezzanine.

The high tops are popular with students seeking a study spot in Commons, so they’re placed close to outlets. “You can be by yourself, close to the outlets, so you can plug in,� Lacey explains.

One benefit to being in charge of a college dining hall is its proximity to the world of research and discovery, says Lacey, who, with Christine Schwartz, associate vice president for Dining, Conferences and Campus Events, welcomes students to use Commons as a site for academic fieldwork.

“Our staff gets really excited about participating in educational opportunities,â€� she says. “There’s such a big connection between food and science.â€� (It’s not always food and science: In 2015, a senior for her American cultural studies thesis; it’s been downloaded nearly 1,200 times since.)

Another year, a senior studied the efficacy of Dining Services’ vegetable wash. Another senior helped Dining Services decide whether to spend a lot of money on a new type of self-sanitizing food thermometer.

“It was in a little sleeve that you had to fill with sanitizer, and we wanted to know if it was worth the money to buy this thermometer,â€� says Lacey. Thanks to the senior’s work, Lacey learned that the standard thermometers, and how they were sanitized, worked just fine — and that meant money in the bank for ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.  

To raise awareness of good hygiene at the start of the cold and flu season, a student once did an exercise on hand washing. “They had a liquid that had little particles that could fluoresce,� recalls Lacey. “They asked students to put the liquid on their hands, then wash their hands as well as they could.�

Afterward, the students put their hands under a black light. “People were amazed: ‘Oh my God! Look how much is left!’�

Swabbing projects at Commons are perhaps the most common type of fieldwork. For example, it’s well known that bacteria are found on everyday door handles. Recently, after students swabbed and found bacteria on Commons exit doors, on Central Avenue, Lacey decided to move the hand sanitizers outside the doors, instead of just inside. “It made sense for people to sanitize after they left, rather than before they left,â€� she said. 

Condiment pump dispensers are designed to prevent food cross-contamination. But after another biology student captured microscopic evidence that food on a diner’s plate had come into contact with dispenser, Dining Services took action.

Now, Dining Services advises students that if they have any possible food allergies, they can use  ketchup packets. “And we made other condiment options available, so students don’t have to use the dispenser,” says Lacey. 

“We wouldn’t have known those things if it weren’t for our students,â€� says Lacey. â€œWe love projects like that!â€�

The show must go on, said Christine Schwartz, even if it’s more like theater in a box.

In late October, after ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ saw a brief uptick in student COVID-19 cases, “we struggled whether to go aheadâ€� with the annual Harvest Meal, says Schwartz, who oversees the college’s dining, events, and conferences operation.

“I mean, what do you do? What should we do?�

Since reopening in August under COVID-19 protocols, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dining has operated as a take-out program. Gone are multi-hour, sit-down meals. Gone is mixing and matching myriad menu items to create one’s own showstopper (topped with sriracha, of course). Even the venerable Napkin Board is now entirely remote.

These days, when students walk into Commons, all the food that awaits them — entrees, sandwiches and wrap, snacks, condiments, and desserts — is either pre-packaged in single-serve boxes or served from steam trays by Dining Services staff working behind plexiglass windows. Only beverages are self-serve. Once the student has their food, out they go. 

The issue around Harvest Meal for Schwartz and her longtime colleague, Director of Dining Services Cheryl Lacey, wasn’t entirely about safety. Their operation already features physical distancing, universal masking, staff working behind plexiglass windows — unfortunately limiting interaction with students — no indoor dining, including no Bobcat Den, and extensive cleaning protocols. 

The challenge was existential: Could such a thing as a Harvest Meal exist as a take-out concept? Without all the trimmings (food and otherwise), like horse-and-carriage rides, ice sculptures, and other theme-inspired decorations?

“In the end, we decided we had to do it,â€� said Schwartz. “There has to be some sense of continuation of normalcy — whatever that normal is.â€� 

The burden in the end fell mostly on the menu (plus lots of inflatables around the theme “Life’s a Beach”) a range of familiar and comforting fare of a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Harvest Meal, starting with roasted turkey. There was also beef brisket encrusted with brown sugar and chili; seafood chowder; roasted eggplant with artichokes and spinach; and green bean and tofu casserole, among other options.

This is just the most recent chapter in what for Schwartz and Lacey has been a massive effort to give ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ 1,700 on-campus students a normal dining experience, unfolding against a backdrop of anything but normal as students made the transition from sit-down meals in Commons to grab-and-go dining, dubbed “Dash.â€� 

Along the way some interesting things have happened, giving rise to some concerns about post-pandemic dining.

For one, the staff has noticed that many students have compressed their three meals into two, “treating breakfast and lunch as one meal and dinner as another,� says Schwartz, “or treating dinner and the next day’s breakfast as one meal, and lunch as another.�

This doesn’t mean they’ve created some kind of delicate brunch. This is about loading up on take-out items at breakfast, then skipping lunch and returning for dinner. Or, loading up at dinner and skipping the next morning’s breakfast. The convenience of take-out food means they can stockpile snacks and even entire meals in their dorm rooms if they have fridges.  

“It’s an interesting trend,â€� Schwartz says, providing evidence that “skippingâ€� meals does not mean eating less, according to what one might call the Nugget Index. “In the past, we would go through 42 cases of chicken nuggets” — that’s 420 pounds — “on days we serve them. Now when we serve chicken nuggets, we go through 56 cases.â€�

The so-called Nugget Index does more than indicate how much students eat; it also shows what they care about — and those things, whether large or seemingly small, are what Dining Services wants to help sustain, those “extremely important items of comfort food, whether entrees or condiments, that speak to what they love about Commons, from thin-crust pizza and hot vegan options to bagels, guacamole, salsa, and sriracha,â€� says Schwartz.

And chocolate milk. Students love chocolate milk. But this fall the college’s dairy provider stopped providing the product in large bags. So Dining Services put out chocolate syrup next to the milk. But there was an unexpected learning curve: Some students had never made chocolate milk from syrup, “so we had to put a recipe cardâ€� next to the syrup, says Schwartz. 

For students who are in isolation or quarantine due to COVID, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has partnered with student-run delivery app Easy Eats to support meal delivery to students who aren’t able to come to Commons for meals. “We also hope this becomes a platform through which students with special dietary needs can communicate with our operation in a more robust way.â€� 

Efforts by Dining Services such as the Dash program have been a big part of the college’s successful effort to reopen and stay open. Still, Schwartz and Lacey look warily at how the convenience and success of the Dash program might affect their pandemic-free future. 

“I mean, it does scare us,� says Schwartz. “None of us have spent our careers to create and perfect a pass-by dining program. It’s not what we are designed to do and it’s not who we want to be.

“You need to have casual interactionsâ€� before an acquaintance becomes a friend. “That’s what Commons provides.”

“In the future, I think it’s going to be tough for us to get totally away from grab-and-go. It depends on how long the pandemic lasts. Right now, students’ memories of the communal experience and the relationships they can build in Commons are still pretty strong. If we can flip back in the next six months, we have a good chance of being able to do away with grab-and-go. If it runs much longer than that, to-go dining becomes a norm.â€�

At least anecdotally, students feel a strong need to go back to the old ways. Dining in Commons, they say, helps them navigate ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ life, specifically how it helps students make new friendships.

“You need to have casual interactionsâ€� before an acquaintance becomes a friend, says Mei Kane ’23 of New York City. “That’s what Commons provides,â€� a chance to spend time in proximity with people you previously only knew by sight. “It’s especially helpful to meet seniors, since they often live off campus or in suites.â€� 

More than a meal place, “Commons is a social space for me,â€� says Ali Manning ’23 of Sydney, Australia. “I used to sit in Commons from 5 to 7 in the evening, just catching up with friends and relaxing after long days of classes and before starting our homework. It’s more than the food.â€�

The Dash program works well, she says, and “I deeply appreciate the work and effort that our dining staff puts into it. It’s not the same but I am sure that most students would say it’s a sacrifice we’re okay with making to stay safe and healthy.�

Maintaining a sustainable ethic has also been a challenge, since the Dash program relies on throwaway packaging (though as much packaging as possible is made from 100-percent recycled materials.)

Lacey knows there is a base of students, including EcoReps, who “lament that we are using so many disposables.� She hopes those same students, with support from Dining Services and the college’s Sustainability Office, will help a return to sustainable practices, post-pandemic.

“The most effective change that we see among students is often peer-led,â€� she says. “And I think we will have enough peers who will lead our students away from the disposable trendâ€� when post-pandemic life arrives at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. “I think we will get strong support from those students.â€�

Through a thankfully mild fall, the scenes of students eating outdoors here and there, on Alumni Walk, in the new Adirondack chairs, or on Garcelon Field, were idyllic. As cold weather takes hold, and outdoor dining becomes unlikely, Schwartz and her team are constrained by Maine occupancy limits for indoor gatherings, whether dining or not: 50 people per any given room.

“Everything this fall was more difficult than before, but you guys nailed it.”

“We could have up to 50 seats up in the mezzanine� of Commons, Schwartz explains, as the main dining room will still be used for physically distanced food service. “But other campus rooms large enough to accommodate 50 people are already being used for something equally important.�

But there’s no throwing in the towel for Schwartz and her team. “We will always look at ways to build community through dining. We will try to keep the memory alive of the magical experience of Commons for when, someday, we all can dine together again.�

And what about the years’ Harvest Meal? Students loved both the food and the effort, including umpteen inflatables around the theme, “Life’s a Beach.” Vanessa Paolella ’21, editor-in-chief of The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Student, gave a public shoutout in her paper:

“Thank you to all of the Commons workers who have gone above and beyond to keep us fed this semester. Everything this fall was more difficult than before, but you guys nailed it.”

Every day Mathieu Moutou ’22 of Vacoas, Mauritius, makes trips to the Bobcat Den to pick up lunch and dinner, as well as something from a copious spread on the snack table Dining Services has set up for the students who have been living on campus during the COVID-19 crisis.

It’s all been timed so he doesn’t have to spend more than five minutes in the building. He orders online and then gets a notification that the food is ready for pickup. There’s no contact, but the staff are there.

And most days those quick exchanges with the people who are cooking and packing to go containers at the Den represent his only in-person interactions, other than with the students in his dorm (all at a safe social distance).

“They are so kind,� says Moutou, a double major in math and music. “I don’t even have to tell them my name anymore since they’ve come to know who I am. They know I eat a lot so sometimes they give me extras and leftovers.�

In September 2017, Kevin Michaud of Dining Services prepares a staple of Commons comfort food, grilled cheese sandwiches. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

It’s undeniably lonely for the approximately 80 students who petitioned to remain on campus for various reasons, including not being able to travel to their home countries and, for some seniors, thesis work that could not be done remotely.

They’re on campus, but one that’s mostly empty (since March 17, most ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty and staff have been working from home, except for essential personnel.)

Still, some things haven’t changed for students on campus. “ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ people care. They reach out to me individually and are just like, ‘How are you doing?’” says Alexis Fifield ’21 of Guatemala City, Guatemala, who has also been in residence.

“How things are done and what is provided to us has changed, but that sense of ‘We’re here for you, and you’re here for us,’ that mutual feeling of ‘We want to do this together,’ hasn’t changed.”

Even if there are fewer of them, “what makes ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, are the people,â€� says Moutou, who can’t return to his home in Mauritius. The Indian Ocean island nation near Madagascar, which has reported 332 COVID-19 cases total, shut down outside access in March. “My country closed its borders indefinitely,â€� Moutou says. “I don’t have anywhere else to go.â€�

“The eggamuffin. They were so excited about that.â€�

No wonder familiar foods from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dining Services are what he and others crave. “What we have found is that it’s all about the comfort food,â€� says Christine Schwartz, assistant vice president for dining, conferences, and campus events.

When students place their orders online, they are very specific about their cravings. “They ask, can we include their favorite dishes, like General Tso’s chicken and the taco bar. They like chimichanga and lemon chicken.� An English muffin with egg was a big hit, Schwartz says. “The eggamuffin. They were so excited about that.�

When Schwartz and Cheryl Lacey, director of dining services, started planning for ways to feed the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students who would remain on campus, they understood that they’d have to supply comfort on multiple levels.

As Moutou points out, the students see their professors on Zoom and such, but the dining staff are their main in-person contact — albeit from a safe social distance — with the world outside their dorm. “Besides Security, we are probably going to be the only people they are going to see on campus,� Schwartz says.

“I like just taking time to sit out here and get some fresh air,” says Alexis Fifield ’21 of Guatemala City, Guatemala, as she finishes dinner, including some Dining Services comfort food: french fries. What hasn’t changed for students on campus is the sense that “ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ people care,” she says. (Jay Burns/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

“It was a quick turn for us,� she adds. “We were retooling almost hourly to get there while we were maintaining the health and wellness of our own staff.�

They decided deliberately to provide food in two venues, to give students two distinct places to visit, breaking up their days. A continental breakfast is available at Commons and grab-and-go lunches and dinners are prepared and distributed at the Den.

The Dining Services staff working these areas “really connect with the students,â€� Schwartz said. That includes recognizing who eats what and who is going to be super sad if there are no Oreos on the snack table (actually, two 8-foot tables together). Which turned out to be most of the remaining students, as it turns out. “I tried to get some Lorna Doones and Nutter Butters and some Milanos and they are like, ‘Where are my Oreos?’â€� Schwartz says.

The staff has also been helping students process as they face a strange situation on campus while also preparing for final exams (going on now through May 2) and trying to stay healthy. Maybe they’ve wanted to complain about coursework, or what they missed, or just how weird all this was.

More comfort food: See the deliciousness of a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Bobcat sandwich as it is assembled by Dining Services executive chef Owen Keene. Video by Theophil Syslo.

That definitely happened at first, Schwartz says. But by mid-April, the talk about the weirdness had diminished. The team reached its stride and shifted to an online ordering system to shorten students’ wait times inside the Den. “It has sort of taken on a rhythm of its own.�

The constant has been comfort food, fitting for what has been a chilly spring in Maine, including a 6-inch snowfall on April 10. (On one notably warm, sunny day on campus, the staff saw a sudden increase in requests for sliced fruit and salads, typical for good weather, Schwartz says.)

For the most part, Schwartz says, the remaining students on campus want the classics. There’s the student who ordered chicken nuggets so often that Schwartz wondered if it might be time for a gentle nudge about other food groups.

They want Chicken Patty Satty (“Chicken Patty Saturday,� that is). The taco bar has been established, with takeaway containers of salsa and other add-ons. And they really, really want General Tso’s chicken. (See recipe, in case you too are having a craving.)

Not Moutou. He’s been craving chicken with scallions — although “my favorite snack is, by far, the frozen mac and cheese,� he says. Schwartz confirms that this is one of the most popular snacks to go. When Moutou takes it back to the dorm, it’s just a frozen block of pasta and sauce — but it becomes “a culinary delight ready in four minutes in the microwave.�

BATES GENERAL TSO’S CHICKEN

Serves: 6
Start to finish: 1 hour (30 minutes active time)

The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dining Services version of General Tso’s chicken uses boneless, breaded chicken wings, deep fried, but this “Close to Commonsâ€� recipe can be adapted for whatever breaded chicken you have on hand, including frozen chicken tenders that can be cooked on a sheet pan in the oven.

If you’re ambitious and want to make your own fried chicken to start, use a counter-top deep-fat fryer, an air fryer, or fry on the stovetop in a pan deep enough to hold the amount of vegetable oil needed to fry the chicken. (Our only rule is to make sure the chicken is thoroughly cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees.)

You can use the time the chicken is warming or cooking to prep the rest of the ingredients, including blanching the broccoli and carrots and making the sauce. Amounts for the broccoli and carrots are suggested; make more if you want more emphasis on the vegetables.

Serve over rice to soak up the sauce.

1 to 2 pounds boneless breaded chicken wings or tenders depending on how much protein you’d like

Vegetable oil

1/4 teaspoon chopped garlic

1/4 teaspoon ginger, minced (or pureed if available)

1 tablespoon white wine

1/2 cup vegetable stock

2 1/2 teaspoons soy or tamari sauce

1 tablespoon white vinegar

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon corn syrup

2 1/2 teaspoons of teriyaki sauce

1/8 teaspoon of red pepper (about 2 pinches) or more to taste

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 1/2 tablespoons water

1/2 cup broccoli (ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ uses florets)

1/4 cup of fresh carrots, matchstick-cut

Put the chicken in the oven, using instructions on the package or, if you’re frying, into the hot oil.

Cut the carrots into matchsticks and the broccoli into florets. Boil water in a medium-sized pot and when it is at a rolling boil, drop the vegetables in for one minute. After one minute, drain and run cold water over them to stop the cooking process.

Alternatively, you can plunge them into an ice-water bath. The goal is to keep the vegetables a little crisp. Set aside.

In a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, warm 1 to 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and stir-fry the garlic and ginger for a minute. Add wine and let it cook off for about a minute.

Add the vegetable stock (chicken will do if you don’t have vegetable stock or bouillon on hand), soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, corn syrup, teriyaki sauce and crushed red pepper to the pan. Bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, mix the cornstarch with 1 1/2 tablespoons of water to make a slurry. When it’s creamy and mixed, add to the boiling sauce. Stir constantly as it thickens.

Taste to check the seasonings and adjust accordingly. If you like spice, you might want more red pepper at this point.

Pour over the cooked chicken and toss to coat, then garnish with the blanched vegetables. At ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, it’s served over rice.

Selected from the largest applicant pool in ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ history, the 501 members of the Class of 2023 arrive at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ on Monday, Aug. 26.

As they settle into various campus abodes on Opening Day and kick off their nine-day Orientation, the new students are embarking on a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ journey that, in a conventional sense, has a specific terminus: Commencement four years hence, on May 28, 2023.

In another sense, a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ journey is timeless, a mindset that lasts “for as long as they wish,â€� says Professor of Sociology Emily Kane.

In her Pettengill Hall office, Professor of Sociology Emily Kane wraps up a meeting with Hermione Zhou ’21 last January. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

While regular classes don’t begin until Sept. 4, Orientation offers a taste of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ academics right off the bat. So on Tuesday morning, the day after they arrive, the new students will attend their very first class, specifically their First-Year Seminar.

This fall, Kane is teaching one of the seminars, “Inequality, Community, and Social Change.� A few days ago, as Kane was preparing for Tuesday’s first class gathering, she was also exchanging emails with a former student, now in graduate school, who took her First-Year Seminar six years ago.

+Class of 2023 by the Numbers

“She was writing to say she’d come across a recent book chapter I wrote,â€� Kane explains, “and was finding it useful in her own graduate work on family policy.â€�

That moment — communicating about academics with an alumna while simultaneously preparing for new students — left Kane dazzled “by all those connecting threads. That’s what I hope to convey on the first day of class: the excitement and possibility and world of new connections that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ offers.â€�

Jamari Amrham ’22 of Richmond, Calif., has his eyes on his mom, Cherie Hill, as she took a selfie during Opening Day in 2018. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

All across campus, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has its arms open to the new students, ready to help them make the best of these transformational four years.

“Orientation introduces students to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ people, programs, and resources that will give them the tools to succeed,” says Assistant Dean of Students Blake Reilly, who oversees Orientation.

“We want our newest students to know that there’s always someone to turn to for support — and, hopefully, it’s someone they will have already met at Orientation.”

Orientation, which also features three days of student-led outdoor trips throughout Maine and New Hampshire, concludes next Tuesday with Convocation, the official opening of the academic year.

This year’s Convocation features an address by Dolores Huerta, a labor activist and civil rights icon who co-founded the United Farm Workers of America. The subject of an eponymous documentary that is this year’s Commons Read, Huerta will receive a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ honorary degree at Convocation.

On Opening Day, as seen in 2018, new students get many helping hands from student members of the college’s Residence Life staff. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

The metaphorical arms welcoming the new class include those of the beloved, college-run Dining Services, fully ready to welcome the newest students on Monday evening for their very first meal in Commons.

“Whether a student has had a great day or a lousy day when they come through our doors, we have an opportunity to make their experience excellent.”

Among other items, the first dinner will feature salmon piccata; barbecue seitan with veggies; a variety of pastas and sauces, including marinara, alfredo, pesto; and squash and crab bisque made from scratch, as all soups are at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ — not to mention fresh tomatoes and kale from the college’s vegetable garden, the Plot, run by student EcoReps.

As prior generations of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students have discovered, dining at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ — distinctive for its single dining hall — is about great community and great food. “We want our new students to understand that this is a fun place and a comforting place — their home away from home,” says Director of Dining Cheryl Lacey.

Community and comfort are on the menu for the Class of 2023 at Dining Services, where Kevin Michaud prepares grilled cheese sandwiches for a recent Friday lunch. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

A meal at Commons gives students a chance to press the reset button, she says.

“Whether a student has had a great day or a lousy day when they come through our doors, we have an opportunity, at each point of service, to make their experience excellent.”

Students “should always feel comfortable approaching any of us to ask questions. They should feel comfortable building connections with our chefs, which they do, year after year, and asking questions about their food.”

Pursuant to answering food questions, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ recently became one of the few liberal arts colleges nationally to offer  for every dish on the Dining Services menu.

Continued national and international geographic expansion is “imperative.”

The 501 students arrive Monday thanks to the work of the Admission team, which reviewed a record-setting 8,222 applications this year.

“There’s excitement for ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ right now — students and families really desire a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ liberal arts education,â€� Weisenburger says, pointing to strengths like Purposeful Work, highly relevant and interdisciplinary academics, a location in Lewiston and in Maine, and a “community where students are recognized and celebrated as individuals.â€�

The new class features historic strengths, including 28 percent U.S. students of color, the highest ever, and a continued demographic-driven expansion to the West and South.

+A Few Facts About Students in the Class of 2023

As recently as 2009, 50 percent of the incoming class was from New England. This year’s class is 39 percent, even as ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ maintains its firm commitment to Maine students. Similar to prior years, Mainers represent 9.6 percent of the class.

Continued national and international geographic expansion is “imperative,� explains Weisenburger, as high-school-age populations in the Northeast decline.

“ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ continues to invest in diversifying and strengthening our applicant pool,â€� says Weisenburger. “And that’s not the same as merely growing the pool. Our goal is to attract the most diverse and talented applicants possible, while staying true to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and enrolling students who really want to be here.â€�

+The 2019 Admission Season by the Numbers

There’s strength in numbers, she adds. “ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ is in a very competitive higher-education environment. From that competitive standpoint, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ is where we need to be.â€�

“ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ continues to invest in diversifying and strengthening our applicant pool,â€� says Dean of Admission Leigh Weisenburger, seen in 2018 on Opening Day for the Class of 2022. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

In terms of academic strength, “the numbers speak for themselves,â€� she says, noting an average GPA of 3.73. “Beyond the numbers is the high level of curiosity these students have, regardless of their high school background. The way they want to learn and the questions they want to ask — that’s what really excites me.â€�

On Opening Day, Weisenburger will join President Clayton Spencer for an end-of-day event with all new students and parents. Weisenberger’s message? “Just take a moment to celebrate. Take a deep breath, and enjoy the moment.�

“They loved the brisket,” said Cheryl Lacey as she paused, however briefly, during the college’s faculty and staff holiday gathering on Tuesday evening in Commons.

Lacey, director of dining at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, was talking about the students’ own dining celebration, their beloved Harvest Meal, which held a few weeks ago, before Thanksgiving break.

The annual tradition is fun for her team, she says. “It’s about their reactions. The big smile.  The napkin the next day that says, ‘Oh my gosh I just loved that dish.”

Each year, the Harvest Meal menu grows “pretty much out of Owen’s imagination,” she says, referring to Executive Chef Owen Keene. With another food-fueled holiday season upon us, here are four dishes, both mains and sides, from the 2017 Harvest Meal menu.

SEAFOOD CHOWDER
Servings: 11 portions (6 ounce)

2 teaspoons canola oil
2 stalks celery, medium diced
1/4 large onion, medium diced
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons fish base
2 quarts milk
1/2 pound cooked potatoes, diced
1/4 pound 40/60 count scallops
1/4 pound 70/90 peeled, de-veined raw shrimp
1/4 pound lobster meat
1/2 pound fish of your choice, can be a variety
1/2 teaspoon tabasco sauce

In a pan over medium heat, melt butter or margarine. Whisk flour into the butter until a thick, rough paste forms (roux.) As it cooks the roux will become smooth. Stir often and watch for burning.

After about 5 minutes, remove from heat and set aside.

Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes.

Mix fish base and milk, then add to vegetables and bring to a simmer.

Thicken with roux.

Add potatoes, scallops, shrimp, lobster, fish, and tabasco. Bring back to a simmer, and simmer for 10 minutes. Check seasoning.

Every Harvest Meal has a theme woven through Commons decorations and the menu. In 2015, it was “Cats on the Coast.” (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

CORN AND BLACK BEAN SUCCOTASH

Servings: 14 (4-ounce) portions

3 cups whole kernel corn, fresh or frozen
14.5-ounce can black beans
1 cup roasted red peppers

In a pan over medium heat, add all ingredients and simmer until heated through. Season to taste.

From 2006: students queue up for Harvest Meal outside Chase Hall, the home of dining Commons until 2008. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

HERBED STUFFING

Servings: 12 (4 ounce) portions

1/2 large onion, medium diced
2 stalks celery
1/3 cup margarine
6 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 gallon dried bread, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon sage

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a pan over medium-high heat, melt margarine. Add onion and celery and sauté for 10 minutes.

Add stock. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add bread, salt, pepper and sage. Mix thoroughly. Place in a greased baking pan.

Bake for 15 minutes.

From 2002: Dining Service’s Paul Begin presides over that year’s medieval-themed Harvest Meal. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

BROWN SUGAR AND CHILI CRUSTED BRISKET

Servings: Rub is enough for two (5-6 lb.) beef briskets, each approximately 20 portions

3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons dark chili powder
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons salt
1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons black pepper
3 tablespoons + 1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground bay leaf
1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons granulated garlic
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated onion

Mix ingredients and rub generously on briskets.

Bake at 250 to 275 F. for 3 hours minimum. Brisket needs to reach an internal temperature of 180 degrees.

Leftover rub can be refrigerated in an airtight container.

Leaving Commons, students can test their luck and make food requests on a napkin that they tack to a Napkin Board. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

The fate of Commons food just might lie on a small, crumpled napkin.

That’s because Dining Services has elevated the lowly paper napkin to a more consequential role: After breakfast, lunch, or dinner, students can test their luck and write specific food requests on a napkin that they tack to a large bulletin board near the Commons exit.

Director of Dining Services Cheryl Lacey, who has overseen the Napkin Board for years, says that student comments tend to fall into three categories: requests for specific items; complaints and questions about particular policies or dishes; or kudos for different dishes or for the Commons staff in general.

“Lately we have received both compliments on and requests for even more quinoa, kale, soy, and other healthier options at all stations,� says Lacey. “We also have received questions about what happens to leftover food or food left on plates and dropped at tray return.�

Once a week, new napkin suggestions are taken down from the board, then reappear days later, along with a response — often sardonic and comical — that reflects a complex behind-the-scenes review process.

The Napkin Board with updated responses from the anonymous respondent. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

Lacey divides the napkin messages (both the physical ones and the one posted online) by area of responsibility. For example, napkins that address specific menu requests are taken up at a weekly menu committee meeting. She also gets input from the student Food Advisory Committee and considers data from the production sheets generated by the menu management system.

She also checks with the various Dining Services managers, whose job it is to check temperatures and evaluate food at every meal. As if that’s not enough, Lacey also shares the napkins with the college’s Dining, Conference, and Campus Event management staff for input.

Several napkins with similar requests are taken very seriously but frequency isn’t the only thing that affects the final decision.

An example of a response from the respondent that provides an informative response to a question rather than a witty remark to a request. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

“Financial impact, labor intensity, availability, and sustainability all play a part,� Lacey says, who adds that she is “partial to those napkins that feature a little art or healthy dose of humor.�

When a decision is reached about whether or not the student’s request can be granted, Lacey delivers a short answer — yes, no, maybe — to the anonymous Napkin Board respondent, who prepares a draft answer for Lacey’s approval.

“Most of the time, I don’t change anything on the answers,” she says. “But if one of them seems to cross the boundaries of appropriateness or accuracy I will send back an edit.â€�

It’s part of the board’s tradition — which dates to the 1990s — that “the identity of the Napkin Board respondent is kept secret,â€� Lacey explains. “If I told you who it was I’d get into a lot of trouble.â€�

The respondent’s answers can either be rather nice and to the point, or extremely sassy and amusing.

Once, when a student tried asking for a fresh fruit smoothie bar, the respondent rejected the request  this way: “Commons is BYOB (Bring Your Own Blender).�

But hey, it never hurts to ask. And maybe your napkin will be a lucky case that passes the taste test.

This is an updated version of a story that Sarah Rothmann ’19 of Andover, Mass., first reported for Batezfeed, created by students in “Journalism in an Age of Media Explosion,” a Purposeful Work practicum taught by Peter Moore ’78 last Short Term.

The Garcelon Field lights illuminate Commons on a March night. Inside is the traditional and restorative “home base” where students can gather and reconnect during mealtime. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

In the mid-2000s, as ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ worked with architect Sasaki Associates on plans for a new dining facility, it was up for grabs whether ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ would continue with its distinctive tradition of a single dining hall where everyone dines under one roof.

But during their campus interviews, the architects heard a common response from students, faculty, and staff.

They wanted one Commons. “The traditional model still held,� says Christine Schwartz, assistant vice president for dining, conferences, and campus events.

“Maybe because our students are so busy, it felt even more important for them to have a home base where they can come together and reconnect over meals.�

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ didn’t always have a single dining hall. The college once had two, one for men and one for women, until 1967, when dining became coed with the closing of the women’s dining hall in Rand Hall.

From then until 2008, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™ single dining hall was Memorial Commons, in Chase Hall.

“Not a hip, swinging building, but it is great complement to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ campus.”

In February 2008, the new Commons building opened. Located between Garcelon Field and Alumni Gym, at the terminus of Alumni Walk, the 60,000 square-foot structure is clad in brick, granite, slate, copper, and ample glass.

In the collegiate gothic style, “it is not a hip, swinging building, but it is great complement to the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ campus, and it has enormous architectural integrity,â€� said the late architectural critic and author Philip Isaacson ’47.

The Commons dining operation comprises one large dining hall plus two smaller dining rooms and a mezzanine; a multi-platform servery; kitchen and storage space; and office space.

Showcased as case study in sustainability.

Long a leader in sustainable dining, in 2013 ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dining earned a third star for sustainability from the Green Restaurant Association, joining just a handful of U.S. colleges or universities with the rating.

Earlier this year, the nonprofit Farm to Institution New England showcased ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½

It’s also distinctive that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ runs its own dining operation rather than outsourcing to a commercial food service. With some 90 employees, Dining Services serves more than 4,800 meals every day of the academic year to 1,700 students.

Cheryl Lacey (left) and Christine Schwartz aren’t above adding some levity (and lobster claw boppers) in the service of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dining experience. Lacey is director of Dining Services, and Schwartz is assistant vice president for dining, conferences, and campus events. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

As they’ve turned a building into a community-builder, Schwartz and Director of Dining Cheryl Lacey recently talked about both the simple lessons they’ve learned (such as “never install any shelving that’s higher than your shortest employee!�) and the big ones.

1. Change Means Opportunity

As ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ planned its new Commons, Schwartz used the impending change as a catalyst for professional development among her staff.

“The profile of our work was going to be very different in a new building,â€� she says. “So we invited the staff to tell us if they wanted to do something different. If it was possible, we’d help them make the move.'”

The plan paid off in staff satisfaction. Longtime servers moved into the kitchen, dishroom workers moved to the bakery, and so on.

“In some cases, this was the first time in their lives that someone asked them, ‘What do you want to do?’� says Schwartz.

2. Be Trendy

The Napkin Board lets ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students comment, criticize, request, and praise. This napkin’s request for a BLT station gets a hopeful response. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

To keep tabs on changing student tastes, Lacey and Schwartz use the venerable Napkin Board, a wall in Commons where students pose questions or make comments on a napkin, and an anonymous student working for Dining Services writes replies on the napkin. (There’s an online version, too.)

Some fads persist, like the latest fad: Reddi-wip.

Recent napkin comments suggest that hot sauces are, well, hot. Frank’s and Tabasco were big; now it’s Sriracha and Tapatio.

And students, surprisingly, “seem to be connoisseurs of fake maple syrup,� Lacey says.

“Some requests are important today and gone tomorrow,� she says. “But some persist, like the latest fad: Reddi-wip.� Cereal tastes change, too. Lacey just finished a survey that shows a new favorite, Fruit and Yogurt Special K.

A recent trend in dining? Hot sauces! Thomas Sacchetti ’16 of Princeton, N.J., a physics and math major, loves hot sauce on his chicken sandwich. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

3. Stay Flexible

The servery features a marketplace model, where students take their food from one of several platforms — the Round, with a deli, brick oven, and salad and pasta bars; the Bobcat Bar, featuring a range of hot dishes, including the famous shepherd’s pie; plus the Bakery, Grill, and Choices, for alternatives such as gluten-free foods.

“We wanted versatility, and that has paid off.�

The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ team resisted the temptation to define the platforms by menu item. “We didn’t name a ‘taco station,’ for example,â€� Schwartz says. “We wanted versatility, and that has paid off.â€�

The flow of diners to and from the platforms is fluid, easily handling 500 students in a 30- to 45-minute period. “Combine that with open seating areas on two levels, and you have a very appealing dining environment,� Schwartz says.

4. It’s a Classroom Too

Commons is a place to feed intellectual curiosity as well as the body, and ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dining gets valuable help from students and faculty who wish to conduct dining- or food-focused projects.

“We live for this sort of thing because it allows us all to be part of a larger ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ experience,â€� Schwartz says.

Recent projects have included vegan trends and a scholarly paper by two faculty members who investigated the college’s 2009 H1N1 virus outbreak.

A recent senior’s thesis compared traditional food thermometers to a newer style, specifically looking at their self-sanitizing capacity to prevent bacterial and allergen cross-contamination. “We found out that the traditional, and much cheaper, style is more effective at preventing cross contamination,� Lacey says.

5. Know Your Chef

The old ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dining operation in Chase Hall was cramped and outdated, and the chefs did their work far away from — and two floor levels below — students.

Now, chefs work at platforms out front. Speaking literally and figuratively, first cook Roland Theriault notes that “we’re on the same floor as everybody else.�

For first cook Roland Theriault, moving from the old kitchen in Chase Hall’s basement to Commons means that “we’re on the same floor as everybody elseâ€� — literally and figuratively. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

Theriault spent his first 19 years at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ working in the basement of Memorial Commons. Now, at the Bobcat Bar, he gets a chance to talk with his diners.

“Sometimes students just need an adult they can vent to.”

For students increasingly curious about their food, this has been a boon for ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, and for the Dining Services chefs. It’s more than just a service relationship where students grill chefs on what’s in the sauce.

“It goes beyond that,� says Schwartz. “They can talk about home, studies, life, and what’s happening in their lives. Sometimes students just need an adult they can vent to.�

6. Trays, Begone!

Even before Bluto piled his tray high with foodstuffs in Animal House, the tray has been a symbol of the college dining experience.

But trays are on their way out. As ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students take more ownership of their dining experience, they treat each serving like a course in a restaurant.

The only thing missing from this iconic Commons lunch scene are trays. They’re on the outs. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

“And that’s what we want,� Schwartz says. “We don’t want you to fill a tray so half the food gets cold while you eat the other half.�

New students still grab a tray and load up, but older students know better, Lacey says. “When you’ve been here awhile, you realize you don’t need to — you don’t want to!�

7. The ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Is Just a Starting Point

ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students are savvy about what they want to create by mixing and matching items from several platforms. The most popular foundations are pita pockets, bagels, tortillas, and wraps.

What emerges can be anything from bruschetta to a strawberry tart, or almost anything with pesto on it.

“They feel comfortable enough to say, ‘We own this.’”

A ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ version of Iron Chef last spring yielded dishes like “Pita with Spiced Shredded Beef and Homemade Yogurt Sauce,â€� “Toasted Rosemary Borealis Turkey Sandwich,â€� and “Chicken Pasta Primavera.â€�

“They are invested in their food. They are always thinking about it,� Schwartz says. “And they don’t want a cafeteria experience. They want a dining experience.�

That takes creativity, she adds. “I equate it with being in your own kitchen. They feel comfortable enough to say, ‘We own this.’ And that’s wicked cool.�

Director of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dining Services Cheryl Lacey (left) and Assistant Vice President for Dining, Conferences and Campus Events Christine Schwartz. Known for bringing a sense of fun to the nationally recognized ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ dining operation, the duo donned lobster-claw boppers for a recent photo shoot. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

Leading a team of more than 100 that serves more than a million meals a year, the two executives in charge of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College dining operation will share lessons from their lives and careers in a Q&A at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7, in the Fireplace Lounge in the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Commons, 136 Central Ave.

In the hourlong Purposeful Work Unplugged discussion, titled Behind the Napkin Board: Big Business, Right Here on Campus, Darby Ray, director of the Harward Center for Community Partnerships at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, will interview Christine Schwartz, assistant vice president for dining, conferences and events, and Cheryl Lacey, director of dining services.

The discussion will explore work, career paths and finding purpose at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.

The Purposeful Work Unplugged series is open to the public at no cost. Sponsored by the Purposeful Work initiative at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, the series presents notable alumni, staff, faculty and guests in reflection about careers and traits that support meaningful work. For more information, please call 207-786-6128.

A native of New York, Schwartz came to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in 1997 as associate director of dining services, became dining director in 2002 and in 2012 took the helm of the Dining, Conferences and Campus Events office. Her ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ achievements include overseeing the creation of the college’s dining Commons, which opened in 2008, and playing a central role in making ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ a nationally recognized leader in sustainable food service practices.

Schwartz earned a bachelor’s degree in social science at Lynchburg College, in Virginia, where she started her food service career, first as a student worker and then as catering manager. She has also held collegiate dining positions at Sweet Briar College, in Virginia, and at St. Mary’s College in Maryland.

Lacey grew up in rural Maine. The first member of her immediate family to attend college, she graduated from Middlebury with a double major in psychology and literary studies. Though Lacey had intended to pursue a career in psychology, working in dining services as a student gave her a passion for collegiate dining.

After graduation, she worked in Middlebury Dining Services for 14 years before trading in the glorious Green Mountains for the dramatic coast of Maine. She joined ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½’ Dining Services in 1998 and became director in 2012.