Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Students organize a cappella invitational to benefit Food Bank of CNY

Thursday, November 29, 2012, By News Staff
Share
Community

Mary-Jo Robinson, a senior psychology and policy studies major in Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences, had what she describes as a “crazy epiphany moment” during a class on food justice with guest speaker Michele Jordan from the Interreligious Food Consortium of Central New York (CNY): Organize an invitational a cappella concert to benefit the Food Bank of CNY.

mainsqueezeRobinson and four other students enrolled in “Food Stories,” a Renée Crown University Honors Program course, formed Group 4 Hunger Relief. The group joined forces with Main Squeeze, a student a cappella group, to host the benefit concert on Saturday, Dec. 1.  The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel. Tickets are $4 with a student I.D. and $6 for the general public. Additional donations will be accepted at the event.

The concert will feature performances by SU student a cappella groups Main Squeeze, Orange Appeal, Otto Tunes and Redemption; SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry’s Ecotunes; and a vocal jazz ensemble from Nottingham High School, as well as a brief discussion of hunger-related issues presented by Group 4 Hunger Relief.

One of the requirements for “Food Stories,” which was taught for the first time this fall, is a group project that involves community and/or campus activism around a food issue. The course is taught by Jolynn Parker, associate director of undergraduate studies in the Department of English in SU’s College of Arts and Sciences. “The students worked really hard on their projects,” Parker says. “They came up with some very creative ideas.”

In addition to food justice, students studied the global industrial food system, organic farming and community-sponsored agriculture, food foraging, food controversies and food attitudes. Class field trips included a guided foraging walk in Oakwood Cemetery, where the students collected edible plants to cook and eat, and then wrote about the experiences; and trips to the CNY Regional Market, Grindstone Farm (an organic farm in Pulaski, N.Y.), The Syracuse Real Food Co-Op and the SU Commissary.

Robinson, a member of Main Squeeze, says doing a concert was the right fit for her group. Leading publicity efforts is Jessica David, a senior advertising major in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications; finances fell to Tyler Wasserman, a junior dual major in sport management and finance in the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics and the Whitman School of Management. College of Arts and Sciences students Katie Latrenta, a junior chemistry and forensics major, and Gina Kim, a sophomore biology and neuroscience major, are attending to other organizational details (fundraising, posters, online promotion, etc.).

The Group 4 Hunger students took the course because it either fit their schedule or they needed to fill a humanities requirement. They had no idea what they were getting into.  Now they say it’s among the best courses they have taken at SU. “The course made me question everything I thought I knew about food,” Latrenta says. “When I went home for Thanksgiving, I kept asking my Mom if she actually knew what she buys for us to eat.”

cookbookIn addition to the benefit concert, other “Food Stories” projects include a student-created cookbook, “Campus Cooking: Syracuse in Season,” with menus and recipes highlighting seasonal produce found in New York State, and “Rot or Not,” a food exhibit in Bird Library.

Created by seniors Angela Binion (Arts and Sciences), Kaylee Karlik (Newhouse), Sofia Seckler (Falk), and Shannon Walter (Arts and Sciences), the cookbook was designed to inspire students to purchase and use more locally produced fresh fruits and vegetables. Suggestions for fall recipes include chunky apple muffins, cauliflower soup and pumpkin four-cheese lasagna.

“Rot or Not” was designed to educate students on local vs. global food, food mileage and food politics through images of food decomposing over time. The exhibit included three meals, one made with food from the CNY Regional Market, one from the SU dining hall and one from McDonald’s. The food was left for two weeks under glass. At the end of two weeks, the regional food was covered in mold, while the McDonald’s fries still looked as fresh as they did on day one.  The project was put together by College of Arts and Sciences students Carla Licata, Sarah Wilkins and Natalie Rebeyev; Rodney Fleming in the Whitman School; and Jacob Perrin in the Falk College.

“It’s been so much fun to teach this class,” Parker says. “I’ve learned as much as the students. I think the course has changed how we think about food, and what we eat and buy.”

  • Author

News Staff

  • Recent
  • Funding Opportunities for Syracuse Abroad Summer 2021 programs
    Wednesday, January 20, 2021, By Ashley Alessandrini
  • College of Law Adds Vincent H. Cohen ’92, L’95 to Board of Advisors
    Wednesday, January 20, 2021, By Martin Walls
  • Students Invited to Network and Skill-Build with Alumni
    Wednesday, January 20, 2021, By Gabrielle Lake
  • ‘Confronting ‘Who We Are”
    Tuesday, January 19, 2021, By News Staff
  • Arts and Sciences Welcomes New Director of Forensics Kathleen Corrado
    Tuesday, January 19, 2021, By Dan Bernardi

More In Campus & Community

Funding Opportunities for Syracuse Abroad Summer 2021 programs

This summer, Syracuse Abroad is looking forward to bringing new life to study abroad programs after the Covid-19 pandemic setback. Summer 2021 is just around the corner, and Syracuse Abroad is ready to revitalize the spirit of summer study abroad…

Students Invited to Network and Skill-Build with Alumni

Aligning with professional development journeys and supporting students as they navigate their career trajectory past graduation is a dedicated team that encompasses Career Services, faculty, staff and alumni. Unwavering and alongside the Orange community this team has worked to continue…

University College Announces Online Degree in Computer Programming

University College announces a new online bachelor of professional studies program (BPS) in computer programming. The program was developed in response to employers seeking graduates who have the skills to meet the demands of the rapidly changing field of technology….

Stadium Testing Center Closed for Planned Enhancements Wednesday, Jan. 20

Dear Members of the Syracuse University Community: Thank you for your ongoing participation in frequent COVID-19 testing. We want you to be aware, that due to previously planned enhancements at the Stadium Testing Center, the center will be closed on…

Important Information Regarding Proof of Eligibility for and Access to the COVID Vaccine

Dear Faculty, Instructors and Graduate Teaching Assistants: We are writing to provide you new information from the Onondaga County Health Department related to the COVID-19 vaccination distribution process. Eligibility Reminder At this time, per the New York State Department of…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2021 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.