By Lisa Parrish, Gold Medal Classroom Editor

In March 2015, Virginia’s Sweet Briar College’s Board of Trustees announced the College would be closing its doors after more than 114-years due to insurmountable financial challenges. It took students, faculty, staff and alumni by complete surprise. It also rejuvenated that same base. After a law suit and review by Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, the College had a new President, Board of Trustees and a new lease on educational life. 

Six months of instability and efforts by the previous leadership to close the all-women liberal-arts College had caused much damage to the institution’s operations, including shuttering its dining operations. The school operated Daisy’s Café, a bistro, and the main dining hall, Prothro, which opened daily to both town and college patrons.

“I was starting from scratch,” said Robert Loconsole, Parkhurst general manager of dining services at Sweet Briar College, who was hired 18 days before students arrived. “I had to interview staff, go through each location and make plans based on equipment, forge new vendor relations, develop new menus.” In addition to recreating and opening dining services, Loconsole hired three new people to fill out his management staff.

In choosing the family-owned Parkurst to run dining services, the College selected a company with close ties to other area institutions. Parkhurst served as the dining services vendor for Bridgewater College and Washington and Lee University (W&L). Each institution is located within a 70-mile radius of Sweet Briar. Both teams rallied to the call for help.

“The management teams (from W&L and Bridgewater College) came over with a mindset of we are one and lent a hand wherever it was needed,” said Loconsole. He was able pair chefs with chefs and catering director with catering directors from other teams. This allowed Loconsole to narrow his focus on other key areas knowing his lead management team was working with Parkhurst professionals who knew the correct missions and standards.

Loconsole said, “A lot of very important decisions were made in a very short amount of time.”

According to Michael Zanie, Parkhurst resident district manager at W&L, “Our team made a number of visits to the Sweet Briar campus to determine dining program needs, logistics and marketing. From our chef, who offered sample menu cycles and recipes, to our catering director, who offered onsite training for how to operate catering-related software, our goal was to ensure a seamless transition, while enhancing the dining experience at the College.”

At Bridgewater College, dining team members also offered their expertise during Sweet Briar College Board of Directors meetings by providing catering guides and onsite catering support to ensure successful execution of special events.

Loconsole explained, “Sweet Briar is constantly growing. And, food doesn’t stop evolving and changing either. It’s nice to have their support (now and as we move forward).”

The College in August was serving more than 300 students, faculty and staff. However, the institution hopes to expand the enrollment to 800 students in the near future.

In recreating the College’s dining services program, there is a focus to move forward while keeping an eye on the past and continuing to hold onto Sweet Briar traditions. For example, when searching for a new creamery, the College reconnected with a local supplier. This local connection harkens back to the days when Sweet Briar ran its own farm and provided much of its own milk for drinking and ice cream. They even forged a new relationship with a nearby coffee vendor, who created a new Sweet Briar blend only for the College 

“There was a 120-page cookbook that an alumna sent over and we are trying to reconstitute Sweet Briar menus to include some of the older dishes,” Loconsole said.

“People always gather around food,” he said. “We want keep old Sweet Briar traditions as well as create new traditions as we move forward.”

ABOUT PARKHURST DINING
A member of Eat'n Park Hospitality Group, Parkhurst Dining provides authentic culinary experiences to guests at the finest educational institutions, corporations and cultural destinations in its marketing region. Our foundation is built on personal relationships and exceeding the expectations of our guests and team members every day. Join us for a farm-fresh and sustainable dining experience. www.parkhurstdining.com

Photo by Aaron Mahler/Sweet Briar College