Shippensburg University’s dining services have undergone a variety of changes during the 2017–18 school year, including the implementation of new programs and the closing of “Chop N Wrap,” previously known as “Chickendipity.”

Located inside Big Red’s Snack Shack in the Ceddia Union Building (CUB), Chop N Wrap sold made-to-order chicken wraps, salads and curly fries during the day, as well as breakfast sandwiches in the evening and early hours of the morning.

Last semester, Chop N Wrap’s hours were cut back, and when students returned to campus several weeks ago many were shocked to see that it had closed entirely. 

The closing was due to a lack of student interest, according to Nick Iula, the resident district manager of Chartwells — the company that provides SU’s dining programs.

“Closing Chop N Wrap was not a quick decision. We were not seeing the demand,” Iula said. “We are working with the students and conducting surveys to better understand what our guests would most prefer to see in our program.”

Students who are missing Chop N Wrap can now order its menu items at Mondo Subs in the CUB food court, Iula said.

“For those students who miss the C-store Chop N Wrap, we have done a nice job including the popular Chop N Wrap menu items at our CUB Mondo’s,” Iula said. “Look for a full selection of flatbread wraps and a wide assortment of prepared-to-order salads at our Mondo’s.”

At the beginning of last semester, the hours of Kriner Dining Hall’s King Street Subs and Papa John’s hours were changed from a 10 p.m. to a 9 p.m. closing time on weekdays, and are now closed on weekends entirely, contrary to previous semesters.

Despite the closings, numerous additions were also made to SU’s dining locations.

This semester, “teaching kitchens” will be implemented at the dining halls, which will teach students how to prepare different meals, depending on the day and location.

Another new program that has begun this semester is “Love,” which involves dining hall managers and chefs choosing a table at random in each dining hall and awarding a complimentary treat to the table’s occupants, according to Iula.

At Old Main’s Century Café, Steph Hockersmith has been hired to replace long-time manager Cindy Emondi.

“She is making some really great progress with tailoring our grab-n-go items to the students’ needs,” Iula said.

He cited SU’s “table touches,” an in-house term that refers to Chartwells’ communication with students, as a reason why enhancements are constantly being made to the university’s dining services. Iula also frequently meets with the Student Government Association to discuss changes that the students hope to see.

In upcoming semesters, Iula said he would like to provide students with more authentic cuisine, specifically Mexican and Latin food. He also plans to continue a partnership between Reisner Dining Hall and Etter Health Center that promotes healthy eating.

“We make enhancements at each location every semester,” Iula said. “We believe those frequent changes and improvements keep our program fresh and innovative.”

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