Working with a dedicated team that strives to make each event memorable for each client and their guests. Developing associates and taking part in their natural abilities to show their creativity on events. Earning the respect and trust of new clients and maintaining a long and lasting relationship.

Pelotonia Cancer Fundraiser. Pelotonia is a two day bike ride to raise funds for cancer research. My team and I orchestrated a farm to table buffet for eight thousand participants and guests on opening night, two buffets for the riders on their 25 and 50 mile stop and another farm to table buffet for five thousand at the 100 mile stop to complete the first day. The second day we provided a farm to table lunch for the three thousand participants that completed the 150 mile ride. Pelotonia has been the most rewarding event I’ve been a part of thus far. The months of planning, organizing, and working side by side with creative Chef’s and a team of people that provided an outstanding menu and visual feast for a wonderful event that raised twenty-one million dollars.

We have an amazing team of Chef’s, Directors, Managers and Associates that work seamlessly together to make each experience memorable. We truly enjoy each other’s company and make the work environment a place you want to be a part of. We have a fantastic relationship with the UIC (as a new manager for a new account said… “I can’t believe how nice everyone is to each other” when he shadowed recently) community. We enjoy what we do at UIC and appreciate the leader of our team and the people we work with.

By caring about who I’m working with. I work at a very diverse campus – from our students to our managers – so for me, it’s important to take the time to be involved with their lives to learn more about them and their backgrounds.

Most of what I learned about food, I learned from them – my great-grandma, dad, mom and grandmother. A lot of our family recipes weren’t written down, but I’ve taken the time to write them down, test them out and share them with my teams. It makes me proud to know that I can share that part of my family’s culture with my co-workers.

I’ve experienced a lot of growth in the three years that I’ve been at Compass. I got to open a few locations for the company, including cafés at the University of Northwestern and the University of Memphis, and I’ve been able to use my skills to support other universities.

While it’s difficult to pinpoint one thing as a favorite, I would have to say having the opportunity to impact college student’s lives through healthier dining, educational opportunities while building our programs on student feedback would be number one.

Growing our internship program from one marketing intern to 14 interns, including; wellness, management, marketing, sustainability, human resources and finance. To watch these students grow and learn has been amazing.

Two years ago we brought a Leafy Green Machine (up-cycled shipping container) to campus to grow lettuce and arugula. We have sustainability interns manage the farm and have developed a made-to-order salad concept, “Where the Wild Greens AR” using the produce grown right here on campus. We’ve also been involved in a composting pilot project with the City of Fayetteville that takes disposed of food from our locations for rapid composting processes.

We never stand still, we’re always looking for fresh ideas and new, more efficient ways of doing things. Our relationship with the campus is a true partnership and the opportunities to engage with students are endless. We have a diverse team of associates who have a voice in our daily business and most importantly, we focus on what “can be” not “what can’t”.

From drop off continental breakfasts to high end catered meals for 1000, from convenient stores to National and Internal Brand Retail, residential dining and developing great people skills, there is no better place to learn the Higher Education Dining.

The opportunity to lead the marketing efforts for the entire campus for various initiatives. The best part is positively impacting the lives of students, faculty and our associates.

Either increasing VMP sales by 18% YOY or becoming a partner of our campus’s student food pantry.

The opportunity to grow and learn for individuals from vast backgrounds and with various expertise. There are several opportunities to enhance your experience and try new things to help your grow and progress to the next level in your career.

I have worked with Chartwells ever since my junior year of college. I have been working with my team for 5 years and they have become my family away from home.