Bridgett Stapleton has been hired as the new Senior Food Service Director. She is responsible for overseeing all food-related operations and dining establishments on campus including McConaughy Hall, the Campus Center, Pi Café, Summerfields, and Weshop.

According to Stapleton, who sat in on several WSA Dining Advisory Committee meetings last year, several students repeatedly said they wanted more dining options on the weekends, which is why the campus center is now offering pizza on Saturdays and Sundays on a trial basis.

Stapleton said that one of the best ways to receive student feedback is through surveys, like the one emailed out to some students at the end of last semester.

“I was told there were 300 to 500 responses,” Stapleton said. “We [received] great information on what students like and don’t like. Mexican, for instance, was at the bottom of the pile.”

Student preferences are also monitored at the registers. According to Stapleton, items with poor sales are always candidates for replacement. For example, the burritos on the first floor of the campus center had very poor sales, so they were replaced with “Loose Leafs,” a new salad bar.

Stapleton was also involved with the decision to close the University Club, a small eating establishment for faculty and staff located on Mount Vernon Street.

“That campus dining operation was not sustaining itself,” Stapleton said. “It had very low attendance, as low as six customers per day. Our hope is to entice [the faculty] to some of the student locations, which will build a sense of community and enable students and faculty able to have a much closer link.”

In addition, the campus dining website has been updated and expanded. It is now part of the Wesleyan website and current weekly menus are available online.

“We’re always trying to increase communication with students,” Stapleton said. “I actually got an email from a student thanking me…it’s the little things that matter.”

Weekly menus and specials, feedback options, and a complete list of on-campus dining locations and hours can be viewed at http://www.wesleyan.edu/campusdining/.

Stapleton replaced Tim Reiss, a former colleague from the University of Hartford.

After Hartford, Stapleton continued to work for Aramark. She came to Wesleyan from Athens, Greece, where she worked as Aramark’s Director of Operations for the 2004 Summer Olympics.

“It was the third Olympics I’ve worked on,” Stapleton said. “Basically, we [had] to greet 15,000 people and feed them for a month.”

Stapleton served as the Resident District Manager for Aramark for three years in Hartford. An alumna of the University of Scranton, she majored in international business.

“I was already a student worker, and when I graduated in the 80s, the job market was really tight,” Stapleton said. “I loved food and I loved people, so I sort of fell into it. I figured it would be a one to two year thing and then I would maybe go back to school, but I just got engrossed in it.”

Stapleton’s impressive background and managerial skills made her a prime candidate for the job, according to Manuel Cunard, director of auxiliary operations and campus services. Cunard was one of several staff members she met with during the interview process.

“She’s very thoughtful and knowledgeable,” Cunard said. “She also has excellent personal relations, and she showed a real interest in having even greater communication with students and catering to their needs.”