One-On-One with Food Service Director Hope Walker
From Our Kitchen, Setting Good Examples, SAGE Community, One-on-One, Featured Venue
Meet SAGE Food Service Director Hope Walker! She’s been with SAGE for 23 years, all at Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bethesda, Maryland. She was recently recognized by Food Management as one of 30 Foodservice Heroes, chosen from more than 400 nominations across the country, for going beyond the call of duty and demonstrating the best of the onsite dining community. We chatted with Hope to talk about her food service career and why she enjoys...
How One SAGE Community Puts Sustainability First
Sustainability, SAGE Community, Featured Venue
In school dining communities, it’s easy to see how much food doesn’t get eaten. Trash bags can fill up fast – and a majority of what’s discarded doesn’t have to end up in a landfill. But school dining is also one of the best settings for successful waste reduction programs. At John Burroughs School (JBS) in St. Louis, Missouri, they’ve reached the gold standard in school dining sustainability, achieving a 100% waste-free kitchen and dining room. Environmental awareness is deep-rooted...
Growing SAGE: Campus Garden at River Oaks Baptist School
Gardens, SAGE Community, One-on-One, Featured Venue
Spring has sprung! At many SAGE venues, we’re getting our campus gardens ready for planting. 70% of the communities we serve have a type of garden – from small herb boxes to small farms – and we enthusiastically harvest from them for our recipes. We know how important it is for young people to be exposed to gardening. Research shows that gardening experiences from childhood through young adulthood affect the amount of fruits and vegetables that young people eat. So...
One-on-One with a SAGE Team Member: Wendy Lambert
SAGE Community, One-on-One, Featured Venue
Team Member Wendy Lambert has been with SAGE at St. Andrew’s School in Boca Raton for 21 years this November. His incredible work ethic, respect for those around him, and contagious sense of humor make a difference in his community every day. Student Geoffrey Atulo even wrote about Wendy in an essay on character: “Wendy was the jolliest and most positive being I had ever seen. I decided to be like [him]. Through [his] exuberant character, I was able to...
One-on-One with a SAGE Team: Allen Clark and Mohamed Dirir
SAGE Community, One-on-One, Featured Venue
Meet dream team Allen Clark and Mohamed Dirir, Food Service Director (FSD) and Executive Chef at Mount Vernon Presbyterian School in Atlanta, Georgia. Their philosophy on working as a team and striving to be better every day is inspiration for us all! What’s the ideal relationship between a FSD and an Executive Chef? Allen: It’s built on trust. The FSD trusts the Executive Chef to produce food that completely meets SAGE standards for taste, safety, and presentation. The Chef trusts...
One-on-One with a Food Service Director: Alice Mathews
SAGE Community, One-on-One, Featured Venue
Alice Mathews, Food Service Director at St. Martin's Episcopal School in Atlanta, GA, feels a responsibility to help students develop healthy eating habits while keeping the lunch experience fun and exciting! Who inspired you to cook? My grandmother loved to cook and I loved to spend time with her. She never followed a recipe. She just used a pinch of this, a dash of that, and whatever ingredients were around. If you could prepare a meal for anyone, past or present, who would it be, and what would you...
Summer Program Feature: A Path to Success at GFS
SAGE Community, Featured Venue, Summer program
Some seventh-grade girls spend their summer afternoons with friends on the beach, chasing the sweet spot between a summery glow and a sunburn while reading their favorite author’s newest novel. At Garrison Forest School in Owings Mills, Maryland, a group of girls rests their heads on their desks while the lively intonations of an audiobook reverberate through the darkened classroom. When the tape clicks to a stop, the instructor flips the lights on and the girls lift their heads. Then...
One-on-One with a SAGE Food Service Director
SAGE Community, One-on-One, Featured Venue
FSD Robyn Kunze has been with SAGE for nearly five years in her current position at Phoenix Country Day School. Robyn is an experienced chef, avid educator, and team leader who brings her passion for food and community to everything she does. What do you do on a daily basis? I do a lot of planning and organizing. I’m always coordinating orders and menus, and working with my Team when they need help with anything. I also help out with...
About Us
At SAGE Dining Services®, our unparalleled expertise in nutrition, sustainability, and culinary trends produces exceptional dining experiences that delight the senses, inspire minds, and foster community.
