Juniors and their parents at the JPW President's Dinner
Every February, parents of the junior class travel to campus to immerse themselves in the spiritual, academic, social and residential lives of their students. The weekend is a wonderful bonding experience and is packed with many activities that surround three main events; the Opening Gala on Friday night, the President's Dinner on Saturday night, and the Closing Brunch on Sunday morning.
Food Services was honored to be part of the weekend and provided the cuisine for the festivities. All the dishes served were chosen by the JPW Committee, a goup of students responsible for the planning of the entire weekend. We welcomed over 3,200 juniors and their parents to the gala, 3,838 to the dinner and 2,890 to brunch on Sunday. How much food does that translate into? Here are some fun, and amazing, statistics from the weekend:
The view from table 269 at the Closing Brunch
At the Opening Gala
We served 11,700 pieces of hors d'oeuvres, 222 pounds of fresh fruit, 960 mini cheesecakes, 576 mini creme puffs and 576 chocolate eclairs.
At the President's Dinner
Chicken Boursin with Haricot Verts and Mashed Red Skin Potatoes required 1,345 pounds of fresh local chicken, 650 pounds of haricot verts and 960 pounds of red skin potatoes. After dinner, everyone enjoyed a piece of one of the 509 lemon cakes that were baked for the occasion.
At the Closing Brunch
And what does it take to serve thousands in one sitting?
For the Presidents Dinner, it took 50 staff members to set up the room and tables, 30 to plate up the salads and desserts, 50 to plate up the dinner and pack up the dishes at the end of the night, and 140 to service the meal. Of these employees, 93 were students who were hired to work for the weekend.
Staff members plate up the meal at the President's Dinner
