Old Dominion University | Wednesday, June 5 | 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Old Dominion University (ODU), located in the coastal city of Norfolk, is Virginia’s entrepreneurial-minded doctoral research university with more than 24,000 students, rigorous academics, an energetic residential community and initiatives that contribute $2.6 billion annually to Virginia’s economy.

On the ODU tour, attendees will have the opportunity to explore and learn more about the day-to-day operations of the university’s top auxiliary services units, including: Webb University Center, Dining Services (Raising Cane’s, The Den by Denny’s, and P.O.D. Market Village), Broderick Dining Commons, Barry Art Museum, and the University Village Bookstore.

Ed Session: Managing Multiple Operations

Speaker: Ed Kane, AVP University Services Carleton University

If you are in the day-to-day weeds of a particular operation, it can sometimes be hard to see the impact that auxiliary services has on a campus as a whole. The work you do is essential to keeping things running smoothly, but auxiliary services is comprised of many moving parts. When you take a step back and look collectively at all operational areas, you will see the benefits of managing each unit effectively and the skills sets you need to be a successful industry leader. Sometimes, it’s okay to go from expert to generalist — this session will leave you confident and ready to wear many hats!

Customer Service: Developing and Implementing a Measurable Program

Speaker: Chuck Salem, CEO, Unique Venues

This workshop is designed for auxiliary services professionals who want to move beyond the basic how-to’s of customer service and instead, build a department-wide culture of service that is understood, practiced consistently, and effective at earning, retaining and growing a loyal customer base. People often think of the basic customer service practices — simple things like "greet the customer with a smile," or "answer the phone within three rings." While those truly are good practices to expect of your employees, there is much more to building a culture of service.

In this workshop, participants will learn leadership-centered practices to building and maintaining a customer service philosophy and culture that will not only lay the foundation for service, but also provides infrastructure and practices to go beyond the basics and make exemplary service a vital part of your department’s success.

May 9 | 3 p.m. EST

Presenter: Keya Allen, Associate Executive Director at California State University - Fullerton

This webinar will provide strategies to help prepare for major events to allow for diverse and competing viewpoints to be presented in a safe and educational atmosphere. We will focus on a review of a case study from CSU Fullerton where a national controversial speaker was scheduled to speak on campus, which attracted strong attention from both supporters and critics of the speaker. The community's reaction and response demonstrated the importance of a well-thought-out safety and strategic plan.

May 16 | 3 p.m. EST

Presenter: Dr. Susana Brumfield, Director of Marketing and Communications at Florida International University - MMC

This presentation will be a continuation and update to the previous presentation on ensuring marketing communications are resonating with an ever-changing campus population at C3X 2018. In an environment where students are increasingly immersed with multiple messages, while their attention span continues to decrease, it is critical that marketers understand every facet of this target audience. To accomplish this, the unit first rebranded itself as "shopFIU" and used this moniker to increase efficiencies in marketing. Over time, web, social media and campus activation initiatives each contributed to a steady growth in the awareness of the shopFIU brand. Furthermore, student engagement with the brand across digital and non-digital domains also experienced a healthy growth. Recently, however, marketing metrics revealed that digital engagement with the brand had started to plateau. After careful study of marketing metrics, message components and the current target student audience, "Gen Z", a more comprehensive marketing strategy was developed.

May 24 | 3 p.m. EST

Presenters: Ed Kane, AVP of University Services at Carleton University, Sandra Nelson, Director of Strategic Procurement at Carleton University, and Chad McKenzie, Manager of Residence Maintenance and Custodial Services at Carleton University.

This presentation will be a continuation and update to the previous presentation on tackling waste generation by Carleton's University Services team at C3X 2018. Discover how we moved from a 12% waste diversion rate in March 2017 to 90+% by the end of the same year. Find out how to use Behavioral Insights (Nudge Theory) to examine the issue of waste in a Retail Food Court, modify existing processes and ultimately improve the behaviors of consumers, and dramatically reduce waste being sent to the landfill. This session will walk you through how Carleton applied the skills learned from studying "Nudge" Theory, applied those to a real campus operation, and the continuation of the project. We will also look at how this was received by the community and discuss future expansion initiatives.

June 11 | 2 p.m. EST

Presenters: Eden Harris, Associate Director of Marketing, Administration, and Licensing at the College of William and Mary & Stephanie May, Campus Dietitian & the College of William and Mary

Special dietary requirements go beyond balancing the guilty pleasures with healthy choices, but instead are vital to student wellness and safety. For schools with meal plan requirements, balancing students' medical, financial or cultural needs has become an increasingly hot topic within food services on how to best provide inclusive options for students without negatively impacting day-to-day operations. William & Mary has built a dynamic program that connects students with a board-certified dietitian and subject-area experts to review student-submitted requests for dietary accommodations with the ultimate goal of supporting a student’s long-term well-being. Come learn how to create a dynamic team that supports a highly inclusive dining program promoting campus food education and individual wellness.

June 12 | 2 p.m. EST
Presenters: Kelsey Harmon Finn, NACAS CEO

Join Kelsey Harmon Finn, NACAS CEO, as she tackles the question of how and why we should show up when it feels like there's no chance of winning in the workplace. We will tackle the question of why winning seems necessary. Is there another way to look at how we show up? How do we make progress when it can feel like there are only winners and losers? We encourage you to reflect and share on your own experience on teams where men typically dominate executive positions. There will be time for sharing and group conversation. Let’s work together to get unstuck!

We know it's a really busy time for our members with graduation just around the corner. Don't worry - summer vacation is within sight, we just have to get through the next month. In the meantime, why not kick back, relax and learn about some new educational programming NACAS is offering at this year's C3X?

In the Membership Minute, NACAS Director of Member Engagement Corey Salem discusses the newly rebranded pre-conference event experience, QUAD. Much like the old programming, the day will offer four distinct events, now called "Labs." Watch the video above or click the link to learn more about each Lab and how to register. We can't wait to see you at C3X, November 3-6 in Phoenix, Arizona!

On your campus, you and your colleagues work hard to break new ground, implement innovation and achieve success. Now it is time to honor these achievements by nominating yourself or someone you know for a NACAS award. Your nominations make our community a better place and ensure excellence is promoted.

Just to sweeten the deal, the first 30 people to nominate themselves or a peer for an award will be mailed a Starbucks gift card! Gift cards will be sent by July 31.

2019 award nominations are due June 15 — Submit today!