Jan. 24—Robert Coffey has been named the new director of Duke's dining services, according to a university release. Coffey will officially begin his new role Feb. 27.
"We have set a goal to elevate the Duke dining experience to be the world-class equal of the educational experience," Rick Johnson, assistant vice president of student affairs for housing, dining and residence life, said in the release. "Robert is the right person to lead us there."
Coffey currently is resident district manager at the University of South Carolina, where he manages a $30 million operating budget and a team of 1,100 employees that serves more than 6 million meals a year. Prior to his current position, Coffey worked in dining services at Virginia Tech, Greensboro College, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Longwood College in Virginia.
"The dining experience plays such a major role in campus life and I'm very anxious to explore how Duke Dining can continually provide high-quality services while helping build community in collaboration with the new house system," Coffey said in the release. "I feel privileged to have the opportunity to serve this great university and campus community. I look forward to getting to know the student body and collaborating with student dining advisory committee and the many talented people in Student Affairs to exceed our customer expectations."
Coffey was hired after a national search, which took student, staff and faculty concerns into account.
"Students were very impressed by Robert's commitment to incorporating student feedback and his extensive dining management track record," Duke Student Government President Pete Schork, said in the release. "We're looking forward to working with Robert."