News about Dining Services

One of Penn College’s tastiest traditions returned Thursday night, providing 430 students with a Midnight Breakfast to fuel their finals study sessions. In accordance with COVID-19 precautions, this year’s meal was served takeout only and included a breakfast sandwich, home fries, bacon, beverage and a snack. Dining Services also filled a large Keystone Dining Room table with giveaways, along with a drawing for a drone and other prizes.
Photos by Amy S. Lingg, Dining Services marketing assistant

Dining Services kicked off the holiday season Thursday with “Turkey Bowling” and a turkey dinner. The Keystone Dining Room invited students to try their hand at “bowling” a 10-pound frozen turkey in exchange for a bag of candy corn and a chance to win one of five homemade pumpkin pies. Events of the day continued at Capitol Eatery with a full Thanksgiving meal that included herb roasted turkey with mulled apple cider glaze, mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potato bake, green bean casserole, baked corn, orange cranberry sauce, Cajun cornbread stuffing with chorizo, maple roasted vegetables, bourbon pecan pie, pumpkin pie, apple pie, apple cider and a harvest spinach salad.
Photos by Amy S. Lingg, Dining Services marketing assistant

Halloween Week saw a typical mix of fun and fright across the Penn College campus – whether dressing up for co-workers; serving up “eerie entrees, scary sides and hauntingly delicious desserts” at Dining Services’ annual “Boofet” in Capitol Eatery; or scaring up a giddily gory time at the American Welding Society chapter’s “Arc Asylum.” (The fun’s just beginning, too. Watch PCToday early in the week for more tricks and treats!)

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Pierogies were on the menu at Penn College on Wednesday in celebration of National Pierogy Day. Featuring Mrs. T’s pierogies, several dining units made the potato- and cheese-filled dumplings the star of the show.

Capitol Eatery, CC Commons, Keystone Dining Room and Penn Central served many pierogy dishes including: Smokehouse Pierogies, Fall Harvest Pierogies, Pumpkin Spice Pierogies, Ham & Broccoli Pierogy Quiche, Pierogy Stuffed Ham Loaf with Sweet Maple Glaze, and Pierogy Pizza.

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Dining Services’ third annual Soup for the Soul event, held Thursday in CC Commons, sold over 100 bowls and raised close to $900 for The Cupboard, Penn College’s on-campus food pantry. For an $8 donation, participants enjoyed a meal that included chicken tortilla or cheddar broccoli soup, roll, beverage, dessert, goodie bag and a beautifully handcrafted bowl. As in past years, the bowls were made and donated by students in instructor David A. Stabley’s ceramics classes.
Photos by Amy S. Lingg, Dining Services marketing assistant

Presidential Student Ambassador Lauryn A. Stauffer is your effusive and illuminating guide to Pennsylvania College of Technology in a newly launched video produced by Public Relations & Marketing. Loaded with fresh footage of renovated labs and popular campus hang spots, the comprehensive tour takes you through main campus, down the road to the Lumley Aviation Center and over the mountain to the Schneebeli Earth Science Center.

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Capitol Eatery transformed into a “movie set” of sorts this week when a production crew filmed a video for Mrs. T’s Pierogies in the Dauphin Hall dining unit. In addition to utilizing one of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s inspiring spaces, four students were cast as “actors” for the marketing piece.

“Penn College has always been a wonderful customer and partner with Mrs. T’s. We’re excited for this opportunity for the campus to host our college and university marketing video campaign,” said Victoria DeHart, Mrs. T’s regional sales manager for eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and the mid-Atlantic, and national college and university specialist. “The video will be shared with food service directors and executive chefs at colleges and universities throughout the country to showcase the benefits of Mrs. T’s pierogies.”

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The First Quality Group of companies, a leader in personal health care products and a longtime corporate partner of Pennsylvania College of Technology, has donated a number of sought-after items to the campus food pantry.

In coordination with the college’s Inclusion Task Force, First Quality contributed feminine hygiene products, diapers and wipes to The Cupboard’s inventory. Operated by Dining Services in the Bush Campus Center and supported solely by community donations, the pantry assists students who are struggling with food insecurities and hygiene needs.

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Donations are always welcomed at The Cupboard at Penn College, an on-campus food pantry, including items that aren’t food. In March, The Cupboard was grateful to receive a donation by the Student Nurses’ Association of over 75 health and beauty products.

The Cupboard provides aid to Penn College students who may be having a difficult time purchasing enough food to avoid hunger for themselves and their families.

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A total of 3,546 meals were provided to 484 Penn College students in COVID-related isolation or quarantine so far this academic year, according to Dining Services statistics shared Thursday with the administration.

Figures through February break down into: dinner, 1,258; lunch, 877; breakfast, 817; and brunch, 243. In addition, 351 bagged items (muffins, noodle bowls, sandwiches, snacks, etc.) were given to students who began the testing/isolation process after Dining Services made its deliveries for the day.

The highest number of total meals was 915 in September; November was second with 800. Wildcat Athletics coaches helped make some of the meal dropoffs, it was noted, indicative of the institution’s collaborative approach to serving students affected by the pandemic.

Mrs. T’s Pierogies recently named a recipe developed by a head cook at Pennsylvania College of Technology the winner of its Fall 2020 College & University Recipe Contest.

Jennifer N. Severson, head cook in the college’s CC Commons dining unit, received first place honors – including a $500 gift card – for her Fall Pierogi Hash.

Severson’s recipe calls for bacon, butternut squash, green apples, yellow onions and, of course, Mrs. T’s pierogies.

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Penn College’s Dining Services staff has been collectively called an “essential hero” for preparing and providing nourishment to students cloistered by the coronavirus.

“We have delivered just over 2,500 meals since Aug. 5 – continuously – to 380 affected students in isolation and quarantine on campus,” director Mark J. Leo said Monday.

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Student college relations assistants collaborated with fellow student leaders to coordinate campuswide “Give Thanks” engagement efforts to show their gratitude to those who invest in the Penn College experience.

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Dining Services held its third annual Soup for the Soul event on Thursday, raising more than $1,100 to benefit The Cupboard. For an $8 donation, participants chose a handcrafted bowl and enjoyed a meal of chicken tortilla or cheddar broccoli soup, roll, dessert and beverage. A ceramic art sale was held in conjunction with the benefit meal, featuring such items as mugs, pitchers, wall hangings and tiny statues. Bowls and art pieces were made and donated by instructor David A. Stabley and students in his ceramic and wood sculpture classes. For more information on the food pantry, housed on the first floor of the Bush Campus Center (Room 105H, at the rear of CC Commons), email The Cupboard or visit the Dining Services portal page.
Photos by Noelle B. Bloom, assistant director, Dining Services

Penn College Dining Services’ efforts to maintain continuity during the coronavirus pandemic, both during a spring shutdown and after in-person instruction resumed with the fall semester, are featured in the Summer 2020 cover story of Campus Dining Today, published by The National Association of College & University Food Services: Campus Dining Today