By Heather Fabritze
News Editor
When Washington College first switched to AVI Foodsystems as their dining hall provider in the summer of 2022, students felt hopeful about an improvement in meal variety. However, criticisms of the dining hall have persisted at the same volume as before.
Dean of Students Gregory Krikorian, who regularly works with AVI, hears from students every single day about dirty dishes, unsafe cooking practices, cross-contamination, a lack of options, food being undercooked, and sentiments of not being heard.
According to Krikorian, multiple people have directly reported to him that the chicken on their plates was undercooked. In one instance, he went immediately upstairs and asked the chef to test the temperature with a thermometer. Not every piece in the serving tray was undercooked, but enough were that Krikorian requested that the staff heat it for longer.
Resident Director of AVI Melissa Goodman is aware of the influx of complaints related to the chicken product the dining hall puts out. The brand they use, Freshens, provides a pre-cooked meat that looks dark and aesthetically gross. Other schools who use Freshens gave similar feedback and complaints related to the chicken’s quality, so the dining hall made the decision to swap the product out.
The majority of students’ overall concerns, though, specifically relate to safety features they feel the dining hall lacks.
Sophomore Madison Horsman has only eaten in Hodson Hall roughly 10 to 15 times since the beginning of the semester. Every time she goes, she finds dirty dishes and evidence of cross-contamination.
As someone who was part of a culinary tech program for two years and has cafeteria serving experience, Horsman worries that the employees do not have the required training to prevent the speed at which diseases and illnesses can be transferred by food.
“I realized that there’s a lot of error [in the dining hall]…that should be something that should be looked over every day, constantly,” Horsman said. “I know they should be looking at [food and sanitation] at least every two hours a day, and I feel like they’re not doing that. I feel like they don’t have the training that they need sometimes.”
In her experience, ServSafe training is one of the best certifications to have as a serving employee to ensure the safety of their customers. She doubts that the dining hall requires this training of their employees, but Goodman did not reply to The Elm’s request for the training they receive.
Horsman recently found moldy cheese in her salad and another student, freshman Beth Lanzetta, had a strand of hair in her pizza.
In terms of employee decorum, Lanzetta watched one of the dining hall workers rub his nose and then make her sandwich. Krikorian also referenced a student who witnessed one of the employees open a bag of guacamole with his teeth.
At the end of September, freshman Brendan Brock placed a scoop of white rice on his plate. He then saw an ant run up the side of it from the food.
“I picked it off and killed it, then threw the ant away,” Brock said. “It’s only ever happened once. I stopped eating rice for a week or so.”
According to Krikorian, one of the most reported concerns is the cleanliness of bowls, plates, cups, and utensils. Students frequently find leftover food in dishes that are supposedly clean. After an influx of complaints, the staff began to flip the dishes over so as to prevent any contamination.
Evidence of uncleanliness still persists, though, despite the dining hall’s attempts to prevent unhygienic practices.
“I think AVI has been responsive, and I can’t figure out why it’s an issue, because I know they’re attentive to it,” Krikorian said. “I know that there’s not a staffing issue. I know that the equipment is working, but we keep looking at it, trying to figure it out. Because to me, that’s a simple thing. Your food should taste reasonably good and should be served so that you’re not worried about health and safety.”
Having a variety of healthy eating options is another problem that students have lamented for over a year.
“They have been making meals that are not appealing or even balanced for both students with dietary restrictions and those who do not have restrictions,” senior Alexa Draper said. “Why is there only tofu meat options and not options for someone who wants a cheeseburger that is made of actual meat?”
Questions about the dining hall’s nutritional value existed last school year. The Elm reported in past coverage that complaints about AVI ranged from a lack of options and sensitivity for restrictive diets to incorrect allergy labels.
What students found in the provider was starkly different from what they were promised. The brochure AVI distributed to parents, students, and community members advertised healthier foods and extended meal times on weekends.
According to Goodman, the dining hall staff have a pre- and post-production system that determines what meals students enjoy the best. Each station tracks how many portions they make and have to remake, and by the end of the four-week production cycle, they can track how popular a certain dish is.
This data is what AVI refers to when they are developing the next semester’s menus.
The dining hall is also not shy to promote opportunities for students to give direct feedback on the meal rotation. The Student Government Association sent out a feedback survey on the dining hall’s behalf at the beginning of October, and the SGA also has representatives on a Food Service Advisory Committee that meets monthly. According to Krikorian, students are a few of the main representatives in the group and their intention is to facilitate communication with AVI.
Students’ other main avenue for feedback is the Text-The-Manager line that connects students directly to AVI’s campus managers and regional manager at (302) 246-7045.
However, community members continue to not use the hotline.
“I went to the food advisory meeting and told them [about the food’s uncleanliness], and they were like, ‘You needed to report it in the moment,’” Lanzetta said. “But I didn’t report it in the moment because I was nervous.”
While Krikorian concurs that immediacy in telling the dining hall about their errors is the best way to to improve WC’s meal standards, students still express a general anxiety surrounding the reporting of issues.
Other dining hall users, such as Brock, state that they are unsure how to use the resources. When Brock attempted to find the manager who is on duty at every meal period, he was unable to.
Draper knows how to use the feedback line, but does not believe the dining hall has ever been responsive to their complaints.
“I feel like they aren’t receptive, as friends of mine have used it and don’t get any response,” Draper said.
At the core of all these complaints is fundamental miscommunication. Goodman and other dining hall employees state that by providing feedback, the dining hall will expand options at stations like Creations, but students persistently feel that their problems are not heard. Or, when they are, the staff’s fixes are only temporary.
As an immediate solution, Krikorian said that students with severe food allergies should directly contact Goodman and the new executive chef to create a dietary plan.
A search committee that was primarily made up of students selected Jeremy Schultz as the new executive chef for the College from a pool of candidates. Schultz began his transition to campus from his current position starting on Oct. 28 and will be permanently placed at WC on Nov. 25.
Photo by Olivia Long.
Photo Caption: Students report seeing unsanitary serving practices at multiple dining hall stations.