Emily Eason
NACAS members are leaders who help create hospitable, well-rounded campus communities worldwide through the various campus services they ensure are provided. In this issue, College Services interviews member Emily Eason, dining administrator at The George Washington University.
College Services: Please tell us about your role in auxiliary services.
Emily Eason: I work at The George Washington University as a campus dining administrator for GW Dining. My title was purposefully left general, as I have a wide range of responsibilities within the Dining Services Department, including auditing dining spaces, working with campus partners, and running our customer service channels (email and phone). But my primary responsibilities center around marketing and communication for the department, such as running the GW Dining website, curating content for the monthly Hungry Hippo newsletter, and copyrighting all email correspondence.
CS: What do you get out of being a NACAS member?
EE: I love that NACAS provides a wide-reaching network of higher education professionals that are always happy and willing to help. Being a NACAS member has allowed me to forge great business relationships and bring the knowledge I have learned from others back to DC to improve my campus and team.
CS: What NACAS member did you meet who made an impact on your role and/or your department?
EE: One of the first NACAS members I met was Monica Rattigan from University of Pittsburgh. I originally got in touch with her when I was trying to learn more about the NACAS DIAL Program, and she made such an impact on me just from being so incredibly welcoming and forthcoming with information. Since Pitt is my alma mater, we also bonded over shared experiences in Pittsburgh and working for auxiliary services. My initial desire to volunteer with NACAS can be attributed to her.
CS: What is your greatest professional accomplishment?
EE: While it is not one individual thing, I have to say that my greatest professional accomplishment has been getting to be a part of building an entire university dining program from the ground up.
Unlike most other colleges and universities, prior to 2022, GW had no on-campus dining program. Before GW Dining Services was created, students on campus only received a bulk amount of declining-balance funds that they would use at off-campus dining partner locations. Having been part of the program since inception, I have played a role in so many unique projects that most other dining department employees have simply inherited from their predecessors, like the creation of meal plans, opening of brand-new dining facilities, and the countless adjustments that we needed to make along the way.
I am so grateful to have gotten that once-in-a-lifetime professional experience and am proud of all the hard work my team has put in over the years.
CS: What show have you recently binged that you would recommend?
EE: Severance (on Apple TV). It is a masterpiece that showcases the best of the best—acting, set design, lighting—everything.
If you would like to contact Eason, she can be reached at emily.eason@gwu.edu.
