Hometown: New York City
Major: Economics (with minors in English and statistics)
What is your role on Student Council?
I am the Chair of the Housing and Dining Committee. This means that when the Housing and Dining Committee meets, I am the one who leads the agenda and conversations. Additionally, it means when the Student Council meets weekly, I am the one person from the committee who attends and reports our activity and conversations to the Student Council. As a member of Student Council, I have voting power when we make decisions. Student Council meets weekly to discuss anything that pertains to the committees of: Academic Affairs; Student Life; Business and Finance; Senior Class; Junior Class; Sophomore Class; First-Year Class; Buildings, Grounds and Sustainability; Safety and Wellness; Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; and Housing and Dining.
Essentially, I am the conduit between AVI [Kenyon’s food services contractor that operates Peirce Dining Hall] and the student body. That means when students are happy, upset or confused about something, I report that back to AVI. Similarly, when AVI needs to tell students something, I am the one that reaches out. It is a useful way to distill information and make sure student concerns are being heard instead of going into the void.
How did you get involved with campus dining issues?
As a freshman, I joined the Housing and Dining Committee so I could have something to do on campus. Then, when I became a sophomore, I ran for the position of chair in a student-body-wide election and won (even if it was uncontested). I have held the position ever since!
Usually the process of dealing with dining issues is such: I hear about something either from my fellow Student Council members or from other students. I then tell AVI what I heard and suggest changes that can be made to fix the issue. Usually we can come to some sort of compromise. I will then let my fellow students know what was done to fix the issue either through word of mouth or an email. If a student reaches out to me directly, I will always respond back letting them know either how the issue was fixed or why it cannot be fixed. Sometimes it is as simple as letting AVI know that a particular dish was really good! Which is honestly as helpful as negative feedback.
How can students reach out with questions or concerns?
They can always contact me either through my personal Kenyon email or my Student Council email: housinganddining@kenyon.edu. I respond to each just as regularly.
What are your favorite Peirce items?
Pierogies and the General Tso Tempeh.