The Lincoln Campus Center 11th floor (a/k/a “Top of the Campus”) is about to undergo a $5 million transformation into a top-of-the-line food and beverage teaching and research facility administered by the Hotel and Tourism Management Department of the Isenberg School of Management.

Since the 1950's, the HTM Department's antiquated labs have been located in Skinner Hall (which will also be undergoing a complete renovation for the School of Nursing in the Spring) and Chenoweth.

New labs for a top-ranked program.

The new 11th floor Campus Center location will house all food and beverage labs in one place and will incorporate a design that will make it a true teaching and research facility. UMass Hotel and Tourism Management is currently the 4th-ranked hospitality program in the country out of more than 250 programs, and it will now boast three state-of-the-art laboratories and a 200-seat dining room.

The Basic Food Lab will be used to teach the core course. Here students will learn the "science" of food production. Product identification, yield testing, cooking and preparation methods used for all the food groups are among the topics presented in this course. This is a prerequisite to higher level HTM courses and is a lecture/lab course.

The Quantity Food Production Lab will be used to teach another core course where students will practice restaurant operations management. Students will plan menus, establish standards of operation, rotate through various positions associated with restaurant operations and develop kitchen and dining room management skills. In addition, students will learn the similarities and differences associated with various restaurant food service segments including causal dining and hotel food and beverage.

The dining room will be open to the university community during certain weeks of the semester. HTM students will have a "real world" environment in which to demonstrate and practice their management skills.

The Quantity Food Production Lab will also be used for the elective course Banquet Planning and Management. Students will learn and practice the principles and concepts associated with banquet and buffet catering management. This class usually includes four major functions a semester and it, too, is a lecture/lab course.

The Beverage Laboratory. This combination classroom and beverage laboratory will be used to teach the concepts and principles associated with beverage management. Wines, beers and spirits will be covered, but it will also have a focus on non-alcoholic beverages such as waters, power drinks, coffees, juices, etc. Students will learn about alcohol server liability, the TIPS program, Dram Shop and other laws and regulations associated with this area of operation. The importance of standardization and control will also be taught in this facility.

Donations and revenue streams.

The Marriott Dining Room. One million dollars was donated by the J.Willard and Alice S. Marriott foundation to name this room after the founders of Marriott International. Here students will learn and practice the concepts and principles associated with dining room service including American, French, Russian and Buffet-styles. This dining room will also be used by Campus Center Catering for events. This will be the case especially during summer months and when the HTM Department is not scheduled to use the facility. Food will be transported from the 10th floor UMass Catering facility to a staging area in the Quantity Food Production Kitchen where it will be plated and served for special events.

In order to have a revenue stream that will be used to help maintain this facility, the HTM department will also sponsor other kinds of courses such as Continuing Education short courses in gastronomy, use of wine in cooking, healthy eating and the like. Etiquette courses, especially with a focus on business etiquette, will also be taught. Server training will be available to those looking for part-time and seasonal dining room service jobs. Hospitality and Tourism Management Professional Development programs will also be offered.

Research will also be conducted in the new facility. Examples include projects associated with consumer behavior, yield management, menu development, and human resource management.

The renovation is expected to be complete in time for the Fall semester, 2006.

At various times during the week, expect to find one of the Campus Center elevators locked out for exclusive use to the eleventh floor. Demolition debris will be carried out through the Campus Center loading dock.

A construction fence will go up Southeast of the Campus Center, encircling a staging area and crane. Pedestrian traffic will be restricted to narrow pathways between Campus Center and Hasbrouck Hall.