Semaine Duex

Bonjour! Je m'appelle Hasbrouck. I am a senior at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. I study Hospitality & Tourism Management with a concentration in Restaurant Management and minors in Entrepreneurship and Nutrition.
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Our second week here at the University of Connecticut has been filled with a lot of technical work and the on-going education of new skills.

On Wednesday, we met with some of our superiors, Eric Janssen, Derek Carlsen, and Rob Landolphi, to finalize the theme of the event we are planning. At UConn, one of our responsibilities before the 8 weeks is up is to plan a luncheon for one of the Orientation groups coming to campus. Kelly and I have had to come up with a theme, construct a menu, and have design plans for the actual dining hall.

Our theme for this luncheon is The Hobbit. College: An Unexpected Journey (because, let's be honest, there were a ton more things that occurred in college than any of us were prepared for as freshmen). Everyone here is really excited for this theme, especially my fellow Tolkien fans.

After that, we met with Gayle Misener and her assistant to learn how to work the computerized inventory software called FoodPro. Now that our accounts are set up, we can access the entire food inventory and recipes for the dining hall we will be hosting our event in.

The next two days, we got to experience what it was like to be chefs in McMahon. Kelly and I had a lot of fun when we got to work with Beth in the omelette station during morning shift, and again with her and Bruce in the pizza station for lunch. We have such a good time joking around and learning new skills with them (like how to flip an omelette for Kelly, and how not to get covered in flour on a daily basis for me).

Beth looking very disappointed in us for using the serving tongs as castanets.

We had to work on Saturday because we had Monday off for Memorial Day. We worked with Alice Kapsch as managers in McMahon. We helped her with inventory lists and supervising the employees. Saturdays are pretty slow, so we were able to learn easily without the addition of a stressful environment.

WEEKEND ADVENTURES
This Sunday, Kelly and I hobnobbed in Norwalk, CT. We got on a catamaran and rode over to Sheffield Island. We toured the lighthouse and hung out on the island in the beautifully sunny weather before it started raining on our way back.

Sheffield Island Lighthouse

The Mystic Aquarium is where we adventured to on Monday. We got to pet sharks and sting rays and see a lot of ocean wildlife. We also walked around the town of Mystic afterwards, which was super cute and a ton of fun.

We got some ice cream at the Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream shop! 

It was delicious.

Tuesday, Kelly and I went over to the Student Union on campus to work at the Union Street Market. Kelly learned how to be a barista (which she really enjoyed - never give her more than one cup of coffee) and I learned how to make some of the school's smoothies. Terry Cook showed us around and explained the different stations, while later on, Deb taught us both about the PoS system they use.

We also were able to talk with Kim who took us to speak with some of the student managers and supervisors. They told us a lot about how students work in the dining facilities at UConn, which we really enjoyed learning about.

Yesterday we went to a farm!

Spring Valley Farms is a student run farming facility just off campus. Students take responsibility to keep up the crops that are actually used in the dining halls and restaurants on campus. Julia Cartabiano, Sienna, Tyler, and Molly showed us how to harvest and wash spinach and lettuce. We also helped plant morning glories around some of the student houses.

Nice, clean lettuce that we picked ourselves!

Later on, Jim Kupchunos came by and showed us the bees that he keeps on the farmland. We helped feed the bees with a sugar-water solution. Kelly now holds the record as the only NACUFS intern to be stung by one of the bees. Go Kelly! (She's fine.)

These hats are lovely

Playing with the bees!

Today we worked at the UConn Farmer's Market, selling the crops that we harvested yesterday. We also sold other local produce, including strawberries, corn, and honey. A lot of people came by and we had a ton of fun outside in the lovely weather. Thank you, John Smith, James, and Nicole for letting us help out!

Kelly, workin' hard.

Some of the stuff we sold at the market today!

We'll keep you posted in coming weeks for all of our other adventures!

- Hasbie and Speckel

First Few Days at UNI!

Wednesday, June 5th, 2013

Hi Everyone!


I'm Libby and I am the NACUFS intern at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. I got here on Monday the 3rd, and got settled into my apartment that evening. Tuesday I met with Lisa Krausman, and we went to lunch at one of the main dining locations on campus. After that I attended a staff meeting where I got to meet some of the people I would be working with this summer. Today was my first official day interning. I met with Lisa at 9 for my orientation and tour around campus, where I got to see the different locations  where I would be working as well as some of the main attractions on campus. For lunch I got to try one of Lisa's favorite food items at UNI, which were the create your own quesadillas. They were delicious and it was a really cool dining concept! I finished the day with a tour around the Cedar Falls community. I am starting to figure out where different things are now, so hopefully I will stop getting lost so much soon. This summer is off to a great start and I can't wait to see what else is has in store!

The Adventures of a Penn State Intern: Week 2

Week 2 was packed with so many activities.  We meet directors and managers who worked in the Auxiliary & Business Services and in the Residential Dining department . Some of the topics that were discussed included finances, sustainability, assisting students with food allergies, and understanding students needs and wants. 

Also, last week the other interns and I got the chance to tour and work in the Bryce Jordan Center (BJC), which is where basketball games and big events are held at Penn State. During the past weekend we help the catering staff serve over 1200 high students during math completion. By working there I realized how organized and efficient you have to be when preparing for an event. 

The Bryce Jordan Center (BJC)

Where all the basketball games and big concert happen in the BJC

The practice court in the BJC

Last Thursday, we headed to Altoona, Pennsylvania to the Penn State Altoona campus  for the ABS Conference. We learned an array of topics that included food allergies, the importance of sustainability, some legal terminology and embracing diversity. I also cannot forget about the delicious food that we consumed during lunch …... the cheesecake took me to food heaven. I would love to thank the chefs and food service staff for that wonderful meal.

Some of the delicious food at the ABS conference

Personal Achievements!

 One of my goals this summer was to break out of my comfort zone and try to new things. Well, last week I tried many new things. On Thursday, I went hiking for the first time. Even though, I thought I would perish due to exhaustion on the hiking trail , Lisa and the other women in the adventurous club kept pushing me and help me reach my goal. Overall, I thought the hike was incredible and had the best workout ever. On Friday, I also went kayaking for the first time facing my fear of the water. These experiences were so amazing to me and I really appreciate Lisa Wandel for providing this opportunities. For those who know me know that I do not have an outdoor nature bone in my whole entire body so these were true accomplishments. 

The mountain we hiked

Lisa and I canoeing in the lake

Me kayaking  (I was so nervous)

My First Few Days in North Dakota

Hi everyone!

I suppose I'll start with a little introduction -- my name is Hannah Meier, I will be a senior in the fall at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and I'm double majoring in Dietetics and Psychology. This summer, I'm serving as the NACUFS intern at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, ND. I'm originally from a suburb of Minneapolis in Minnesota, so the 5 hour drive up here wasn't worse than what I'm used to driving to Madison. I'm definitely grateful to have a car up here, too, especially since there seems to be a lot to explore in the Grand Forks area.

Outside of the internship, my main interests include cooking and exploring food culture (eating!), running (I'll be training for my first half marathon as well this summer), listening to music and going to wishing I could afford to go to concerts, yoga, and lots of other things most people enjoy -- like watching hours of netflix at a time.

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The weekend I moved in, I was able to get settled into my dorm. Since I'm the only intern here, I don't have a roommate, and so far, no one else is sharing the suite with me, so I've enjoyed being able to make the place feel a bit more like home. Sunday, I spent the morning walking around the gorgeous campus. It's a lot different than Madison, but in a good way! It was hard not to take a million pictures.

As a happy coincidence, one of my friends from High School who I haven't seen in 3 years goes to UND and is here over the summer! We met up for lunch on Sunday and she showed me around campus and downtown, and I feel a lot more comfortable with my new home. It's a huge relief to know someone here, and I'm looking forward to exploring the city with her, a fellow foodie (she plans to go to culinary school!). 

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Day One
I was very excited to get started and had an idea of what to expect from talking with Dustin, one of my main supervisors and internship coordinator here at UND, prior to my arrival. After finalizing some paperwork at the beginning of the day, I was able to meet many of the people I'll be working with throughout the summer at the various departments within UND's dining services. Everyone I met was very friendly and welcoming. It was easy to see that everyone enjoyed working for dining and with each other. I'm happy to be a part of such a fun group of employees.

While meeting everyone and piecing together relationships between various departments within the system, I realized the dining service at UND is pretty different from what I'm used to at UW-Madison. For example, at UW-Madison, the service of the university's union is a separate entity from housing, while at UND dining oversees all food locations at the university.

After getting a tour of the various dining locations on campus, I was able to sit in on a menu planning meeting with chefs and managers of one of the main residential cafeterias that is closed for the summer for their fall menu. Since I didn't know too much anything about FoodPro (the menu database utilized by UND) or what recipes were already in use, I pretty much kept my mouth shut and observed the process. It was very interesting, and so far, one of my favorite activities to be a part of! The team would first discuss any recipes that were unsuccessful/very successful in the fall and then we'd look further into the specific item's acceptability using FoodPro. If a menu item was unsuccessful, the team would discuss other options and base their choices on what other recipes were planned for that week, taking into consideration availability of ingredients, ease of preparation, and whether or not there would be equipment available (or equipment that needed to be used) to prepare it. The team is also looking to get more healthy options on the menu every day. (I'll talk more about the Guiding Stars rating program later!) It was very cool to see content I'd read about in my foodservice management textbook at school come to life before my eyes. I look forward to being a part of more menu planning meetings as the summer moves along!

Later in the day, I sat in on a meeting with a distributor rep from Foodservice America (FSA) and Dustin. The representative was very helpful and explained to me exactly what a foodservice distribution company does. FSA is the main food and product distributor used by UND, and Dustin meets with the representative every Monday to discuss any issues or explore alternative products. It was great to be able to see the collaborative business relationship between the distribution company and the foodservice at UND. Since UND is the biggest buyer for FSA from the branch in Fargo, ND, it seemed that if there was a need for a product at UND, FSA would stock it for their use. Very nice!

The last hours of the day were spent orientating me more to FoodPro and learning about Guiding Stars and the FoodPro conference UND is hosting later in July. Guiding Stars is a program (which I think is just awesome) that rates recipes for UND based on nutrient density. Dining submits recipes to Guiding Stars, an external company, and they will tell UND whether or not the recipe earns one, two, three, or no "stars" based on an algorithm of nutrient data per 100 kcals. Vitamin, mineral and fiber content give the recipe positive points, and saturated/trans fat, sodium, and added sugars (for example) give the recipe negative points. I was really impressed with the complexity of analysis used to rate the recipes and how that coordinated with a very simple-to-understand rating system for consumers. 

I left the first day of my internship both exhausted and energized. I am very much looking forward to all of the projects I'll be a part of and it seems like I'll be working with an absolutely great team of people.

Day Two
Day two was a lot like day one -- lots of sitting in on meetings and laying low, observing how things work at UND and getting the feel of the operation. I met a few more people and learned about some more processes, some a bit more complicated than others!

I started the day in FoodPro, fixing some errors with jello recipes and entering data for a cheese product that was missing nutritional information.

I was able to sit in on two meetings on day two -- the first was with the leaders in residence services and dining, including marketing, accounting, finance, etc., and each leader will update everyone on past and upcoming events, issues or other concerns. It was great to see the intradepartmental communication and hear about some of the major updates within the department itself. The second meeting I attended later in the day, which was a management team meeting for managers at the two main dining locations for residents. I met a few new faces that I'll be working with and, as was the trend, everyone was very friendly and welcoming. I enjoyed listening to the discussion between managers about concerns in the operation and how they were working on resolving them.

There is a definite trend here of constant monitoring and improvement of issues -- no one really seems to be afraid to bring up concerns, and when they are brought up, they are resolved as soon as possible. So far, UND dining seems to be a very healthy operation that I feel lucky to be a part of!

Some of the more complicated processes we went through today included processing the Production Report in FoodPro, which cross-analyzed actual inventory with projected inventory to give us information about possible issues, and to serve as a report of the current state-of-affairs of inventory. There was an entire binder dedicated to describing the steps of the process, and I'll admit I was a bit lost watching Dustin go through every step -- of course he knew how to do it with his eyes closed.

After this was completed, I worked with one of the Sous Chefs in the main dining facility on "Shorts," which was also a bit confusing, though not as complex as Production Reporting! Basically, we went through a list of items that the kitchen was projected as being short of in the next weeks. If it was necessary to order more of something for a demand that FoodPro wouldn't automatically recognize, we simply had to send an email to the purchaser and he would get the order processed and the product would arrive with the next shipment. The idea wasn't too hard to grasp, but it was a bit challenging to use the information from the chart to decide whether or not ordering extra would be necessary.

I ended day two by sitting in on a meeting with Dustin and a summer resident with severe food allergies. I listened as they discussed options available for her so she could take full advantage of the meal plan safely. Accommodations for individuals with food allergies are taken very seriously here. There is a whole section of the dining center committed to being completely free of the top-8 allergens plus gluten. Additionally, UND offers online ordering forms for students to request menu items that are made separately from those on the line.

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If the first two days of my internship are any indication, I will be learning a TON this summer. After spending these two days observing, asking questions, and wrapping my mind around how UND dining services operates, I'm really looking forward to taking a more active role in my projects later on this summer, and can't wait to keep learning more about the world of foodservice management.

By Way of La-Fayetta

It is common in small towns, especially if they are far from larger towns, for them to be known for something. Dotted along my route are various names that I only figure out by pronouncing them phonetically, my Daddy would say country because usually it comes out with something more similar to my own Granny’s Mississippi drawl.  She was born in Mississippi back when African Americans did not have all the opportunities.

Granny, left Buena Vista, Mississippi in 1949 with a nursing degree, a suitcase, and a smile, headed for St. Louis, Missouri for more opportunities. The state of Missouri said that the Mississippi schooling was no good, so she had to start over again and ended up making a living caring for premature babies at BJC Barnes Jewish Hospital.  In Mississippi, the schooling was fairly different; oddly enough on the first day of school the teacher added a suffix to her name, which is not present on her birth certificate. In fact it only reads F.A. What do you think that spells? My daddy would say, “It could spell Fiona Apple.” No, no it spells Faye.

            My granny suggests paths that I could take, as she looks over her coffee table with Michelle Obama gracing the cover of Vogue magazine displayed on it, I tell her about my bitter semester and the optimism which lies with the NACUFS internship that I landed for the summer. When I tell her that I am making the journey on my own she calls me ‘Superwomen,’ which surprises me because people like My Granny are increasingly rare and I have feeling they will soon disappear.

            On my journey, my GPS gave directions that would otherwise be cryptic to me due to my lack of longitude and a latitude skill that makes for bad map reading in general. I was lead through the twist and the turns of middle of nowhere roads, soon requiring a pit stop in Fayette County, the familiarity became interesting proof. Not all things are given but I am so excited to be given the opportunity to be at Purdue University, in West Lafayette for the NACUFS Summer 2013 Internship. Upon my arrival to Purdue, I called my Granny and in my ghetto voice bestowing a rather fitting nickname, La-Fayetta.           

Week 1

We have had quite the busy week here! Our first real working experience as interns was feeding roughly 3000 people for a volleyball tournament. We had fun and learned a lot, but the 4:30 a.m. wake up calls will not be missed. We’ve had meetings throughout the week with different managers in dining who have been informative and welcoming. We are especially appreciative to Lisa Wandel. She is an very active woman and has been willing to take us out on fun excursions. We hiked near Tussie Mountain Ski Resort and kayaked on a small lake outside of town. The hike was more rigorous than I anticipated, but we had a great time. Kayaking was also very pleasant, and relaxing.

Colyer Lake 

Last Thursday we had the opportunity to leave State College for the day and head to the Penn State satellite campus at Altoona for a conference. We heard some very inspiring speakers and had two breakout sessions focusing on food allergies and sustainability. I had a great experience and learned a lot but my favorite part of the day was the lunch. All of the chefs made us an incredible meal in the new dining center for Altoona. The menu included spinach strawberry salad with smoked salmon and goat cheese, pork tenderloin with quinoa, grilled zucchini and mango salsa, gorgonzola pear and grilled chicken pizzas, and shrimp & grits (my favorite!) As you can tell, eating is one of my favorite things to do, and I’m sure there will be more food adventures in my future at Penn State! 

spinach salad 

Shrimp and Grits 

Pork tenderloin with quinoa

forgot to introduce ourselves..whoops!

Montana State University, Bozeman

Paul Mineau - Foodservice Manager 

Rose Heider - Admin Asst

                               Callie Kettner - FS Intern                                         

21, Junior, Idaho State University

Studying Nutrition/Dietetics

 

Qundeel Khattak - FS Intern

22, Recent Graduate; California State University, Northridge

Nutrition/Dietetics and Food Science & Administration

Culinary Certification: The New School of Cooking; Culver City, CA