A food industry veteran with over three decades of experience cooking and working in restaurants, Eamon Lee, executive chef in Food Services who began his tenure with the University earlier this year, knows a few things about holiday cooking. We sat down with Chef Lee to pick his brain on how to please a crowd, characteristics to bring out in holiday meals and the supply chain woes plaguing the food industry.
Read the full story at Syracuse University News.
When Shirley Trendowski ’05, ’07 (C.A.S.) G’08 was raising her family, everyday life took very careful planning.
Trendowski and her husband, Ray, are the parents of six children. In 1995, after being a stay-at-home mom for 15 years, Shirley came to work for Food Services with one purpose—to take advantage of the University’s dependent tuition benefit. Her youngest child was 2 years old at the time. After a year, she decided to start taking classes herself using the remitted tuition benefit. She began by taking courses that interested her, two classes per semester, with the goal of earning an associate’s degree.
Read the full story at Syracuse University News.
Just off New York State Route 370 in Baldwinsville, a 20-minute drive from Syracuse University, Emmi Farms sits on 300 acres of land. During harvest season, its staff grows fruits and vegetables such as blueberries, peppers, apples, tomatoes, strawberries and sweet corn.
“We try to do all the local stuff we can,” said Tony Emmi, the farm’s general manager whose grandfather, Carmen, founded the farm in North Syracuse in 1946.
After Emmi returned from Army service in the Gulf War in 1992, Emmi Farms moved its operations to Baldwinsville, where it has a packing facility, a farm stand, a maintenance shop, greenhouses and employee housing. Since that time, Emmi Farms has been one of several local growers to provide Syracuse University dining halls with fresh produce.
Read the full story at dailyorange.com.
For years, members of the University community have enjoyed the use of the trail system around the golf course at Drumlins Country Club for hiking, jogging, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. The trails, which are open to use from sunrise to sunset, are also a resource utilized by the greater Central New York community.
Over the past few months, Auxiliary Services and a team from Campus Planning, Design and Construction have undertaken an effort to add modifications to the area for the safety of those who utilize the trail system. A fence has been installed along the south side of the 13th tee of the East Course to protect individuals from the sharp drop-off in the area. Signage has been posted at several trailheads and areas where community members enter the property to outline safe usage of the trail system. Additional signage about dangerous drop-offs, especially in the area surrounding the neighboring stone quarry, will be installed soon.
Read the full story on Syracuse University News.
Syracuse University has selected eCampus.com to be its new full-service online textbook store beginning with the Spring 2022 term. eCampus.com was selected for its user-friendly services and its proven track record of reducing costs for students, which in some cases can be up to 70% off publisher list prices. Additionally, students will be able to take advantage of a convenient on-campus service center in the Campus Store where they can have their books delivered with free expedited shipping after they’ve placed their order.
Read the full story at Syracuse University News.
When prospective students and families arrive on the Syracuse University campus, the first person they often meet is Ed Rother.
A member of the Parking and Transportation Services team, Rother has staffed the University’s north entry gate on South Crouse Avenue for more than 29 years. In that role, he has been a friendly face to faculty, staff and students. With his proximity to Crouse-Hinds Hall, where the Office of Admissions is located, he has often been the first person from Syracuse University that thousands of students and families interact with when they visit the University for the first time.
Rother is retiring from the University on Dec. 1 after 30 years of service. He says the decision to retire from a job he loves did not happen overnight. “The University has treated me great all of these years, but now is the right time to do it,” he says.
Read the full story at Syracuse University News.
The Louise and Bernard Palitz Gallery at Syracuse University’s Lubin House presents “Morton Kaish: A Print Retrospective,” on view beginning Nov. 8. Organized by Vanja Malloy, director and chief curator of the museum and Morton Kaish ’49, the retrospective presents an overview of Kaish’s exploration and love of the print medium.
Read the full story at Syracuse University News.
Jon Webster, executive director of hospitality services announced today that Joe Sidoni, longtime associate director of catering in Food Services, has accepted a new role as the food and beverage director at Drumlins Country Club. Paula Elerick will step into the catering position vacated by Sidoni in the Syracuse University Food Services department.
The move is a result of the Auxiliary Services department’s effort to effectively share resources between campus food service operations and Drumlins. Drumlins recently insourced its food and beverage operations after relying on a third-party operator for many years. The new system required a seasoned management presence to develop the program, the success of which will benefit both Drumlins members and the broader Syracuse University community.
“This is a move that will allow for Drumlins to realize the true potential of their food and beverage program while simultaneously increasing the operational efficiency of our department as a whole,” said Webster. “It’s about putting our people in places where they will succeed and utilizing our staff’s diverse skill sets to operate all aspects of the business in a manner that best serves our customers and the University.”
Sidoni will assume responsibility for food and beverage operations at the country club, home to Bistro 1926, a poolside “snack shack,” and a robust catering and events operation.
Elerick, who started her tenure at Syracuse University in September, brings over 20 years of catering experience to the University’s Catering Services team, most notably at Turning Stone and Sodexo. Most recently, she was the Regional Director of Operations for Sodexo’s college and university accounts in the Northeast. She will oversee a re-structure of the University’s catering department, which has seen demand for its services return to pre-pandemic levels this fall.
Webster acknowledged that this is a particularly difficult time for Catering Services. Demand has risen as the entire Food Services team has faced the same labor shortage as their peers throughout the industry. He envisions a “re-set” for the department. Looking forward, the next step will be searching for and hiring a chef dedicated solely to the University’s catering services.
“In order to better serve our campus and to take care of our employees, we’re going to look at everything we do and make sure we’re doing right by all of our stakeholders,” Webster said. “Our goal is to offer top-quality food and customer service at all of our outlets, and these steps will help get us there.”
On November 1, Syracuse University’s longtime home in New York City, the Joseph I. Lubin House, became part of the portfolio of operations housed under the University’s Auxiliary Services business unit. Lubin House will join a group of Syracuse University properties, among them the Minnowbrook Conference Center and the Syracuse University Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center, which fall under the direction of Vernetta Kinchen, executive director of housing and lodging.
The move was undertaken in part due to the desire to group University assets of a similar purview in the same area of operations, which will allow Kinchen and her team to utilize their expertise in lodging to revitalize the property and its rooms.
The Lubin House has also welcomed a new director of operations. Jonathan Teng began his tenure at Lubin House on November 8, 2021. Teng comes to Syracuse University from TengWirth, a software company offering a customer service platform for the hospitality industry. Teng will oversee a staff of eight people at the Lubin House and will report to Kinchen, who will remain based in Syracuse.
The new leadership team at Lubin House will look to improve operations and programming, along with adding amenities that will support an enhanced experience for guests. The University’s Campus Development and Facilities Operations unit, led by Pete Sala, will take the lead on all needed capital project and engineering upgrades to the building.
In the meantime, the building remains a home to several University departments, among them, Advancement and External Affairs, the Office of Alumni Engagement, Admissions, and the Chancellor’s Office. Staff members traveling to New York on University business can choose to stay at Lubin House overnight.
All staff, faculty, and student groups are encouraged to take advantage of the Lubin House’s accommodations and its incredible location on the Upper East Side, just off of Central Park. For more information about booking your stay, please contact Vernetta Kinchen at vlkinche@syr.edu.
