During Aug. 22, food trucks arrived to provide a new culinary experience on campus. Formed by a collaboration between Truman State University’s student engagement, enrollment, and marketing team, Sodexo, and Food Fleet — a food truck and mobile vendor booking company — Truman students had the chance to experience a diverse array of vendors from across the state, providing Truman students a chance to experience a new form of dining alongside the usual on-campus options.
The vendors were parked in the lot between McClain Hall and the Student Union Building, with booths and chairs set up by the student engagement team. The food options included “The Big Cheeze,” which offered gourmet grilled cheese experiences, “850 Wood Fire Pizza & More,” a wood fired oven pizza trailer and “Roll’n Blue BBQ,” which specializes in many barbeque favorites such as pulled pork and brisket. A mobile lemonade stand also made an appearance and offered a variety of refreshing fruity twists on the summertime favorite.
This is the first time Sodexo and Truman have collaborated on a food truck event of this scale, and neither the University, Sodexo nor the vendors anticipated the initial turnout. With lines extending far beyond their projected scale, many students waited in lines for upwards of half an hour to get a taste of the many options being offered.
John Stewart, the general manager of Sodexo and one of the organizers for this event, was both pleased and surprised at how well Truman students responded to the food trucks’ arrival.
“My first reaction was, we’re gonna need to bring in more help,” he said. “I was very happy to see the turnout to be honest with you, and in talking with the food truck vendors they underestimated the scale as well. Again, this was our first time, so we had no idea what the turnout was truly going to be. But in talking with (the other vendors), if they return to our campus, they are going to bring at least a couple of more bodies so we can get that speed of service up and get everybody taken care of at a more adequate speed.”
The Vice President forStudent Engagement, Enrollment and Marketing at Truman, Dr. Tyana Lange, stated that the fall semester food truck events would be a test run to see if the food trucks would return for the spring semester, and she also hopes to support more local food trucks as time goes on.
Dr. Lange said everything she does from a student engagement perspective is about how to connect students and how to build community. This food truck event was one of the many ways she hoped Truman students would connect with one another.
“I’m convinced that students that have connections are successful,” Dr. Lange said. “Because of those connections, they can find ways to overcome what obstacles are thrown in their way, and those connections are best made through relationships. And I am a firm believer that food builds community.”
Students can expect to catch the next food truck event 4-7 p.m. during Sept. 17. The next four events will be Oct. 7, Nov. 1 and Dec. 10. While the details on which food trucks will be appearing or returning are still in the works, students can be sure to expect that the food trucks will continue to strive for excellence and a wonderful experience for all.