Schools
Sodexo Campus Dining Team Connects with Students and Families Across Southern California
From move-in days to Welcome Week, Sodexo visited four campuses to help students navigate dining options and make most of their meal plans.
As students arrived on campus for the start of a new academic year, Sodexo's Southern California Campus Dining team was there to welcome them, answer questions, and help make the transition to campus life a little easier.
Throughout the summer, Georgia Williams, Southern California Sales Specialist, and Jason Solares, Southern California District Marketing Manager, traveled across four universities in District Manager Eric Cameron's region, connecting with students, parents, faculty, and staff during move-in days, Welcome Week activities, and campus opening events.
Their stops included Chapman University, La Sierra University, Point Loma Nazarene University, and California State University San Marcos, where they hosted interactive information tables designed to introduce students to their campus dining programs and the resources available to them.
For incoming students, navigating a new campus comes with plenty of questions, and dining is often high on the list. From understanding meal plan options to learning where and how to use them, Williams and Solares provided guidance to help students and families feel informed and prepared for the semester ahead.
The visits also brought a little fun to the process. Students stopped by to spin prize wheels, win free merchandise, and engage with the Sodexo team in a relaxed, welcoming setting. These interactions created opportunities for conversations about dining services, allowing students to ask questions and become familiar with the people and programs supporting their daily campus experience.
While the activities added excitement to the start of the semester, the primary goal was to make dining information accessible. By meeting students where they were already gathering, the team helped eliminate confusion about meal plans, dining locations, and available services before the academic year was fully underway.
The initiative was supported by campus dining leadership at each university, including Rodney Reed, Resident District Manager at Chapman University; Brian Kesteleyn, General Manager at La Sierra University; Timothy Fessler, General Manager at Point Loma Nazarene University; and Paul Reardon, General Manager at California State University San Marcos.
Working alongside these campus teams, Williams and Solares helped reinforce the importance of personal connections in communicating dining services and ensuring that students know where to turn when questions arise.
The four-campus outreach effort reflects Sodexo's commitment to making campus dining approachable, convenient, and responsive to student needs. By taking an active role in Welcome Week and move-in activities, the Southern California team helped students and their families begin the academic year with a clearer understanding of their dining options and the support available throughout the semester.
For Sodexo's Southern California Campus Dining team, the visits were an opportunity to establish relationships early, encourage student engagement, and remind the campus community that help with dining questions is always within reach.
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