Dinner With 12 Strangers

A three-course presentation:

How dining in good company can help shape the student experience

Agenda (À La Carte)

1. The Premise

2. The Outcome

3. Conclusions and The Future

1) The Premise

• Dinner with 12 Strangers:– 12 Strangers sit down to dinner

– Each stands up at the end with 11 new friends

• Local alumni host dinner for students, faculty, and alumni, in their own home

1) The Premise, cont’d

• Mix of students, alumni & faculty offered participants a unique and inclusive experience

Students Alumni

FacultyDinner with 12 Strangers

1) The Premise, cont’d

• Establish connections– Students with students

• from diverse academic streams and cultural backgrounds

– Students with faculty• to exchange insight and experiences, to increase

comfort with faculty

– Students with alumni• to experience engagement with the broader U of T

community

1) The Premise, cont’d

• Benefit to Students:– Meet alumni and faculty in a relaxed, informal

setting

– Establish connections beyond immediate peer or academic group

– Develop a higher comfort level with faculty and alumni

– Experience the broader U of T community

2) The Outcome

• 5 Dinners hosted in 2006-2007

• 150+ students signed up for invitation list despite limited promotion

• 10% of registrants were through word-of-mouth or student referrals

• 60 participants in total

2) The Outcome, cont’d

• “It was one of the best evenings I’ve had since I started university.”

• “We were all impressed by the effort Michael and his wife Jane put into preparing the meal (which yes, was fantastic…) and being invited into someone’s home was a very welcoming experience.”

!Students met alumni and faculty in a relaxed, informal setting

2) The Outcome, cont’d

• “I got to meet so many interesting people –even people who were in the same class as me, whom I had never met.”

!Students established connections beyond their immediate peer or academic group

2) The Outcome, cont’d

• “I like that there were professors and alumni and students… It created a very stimulating atmosphere and wasn’t just a typical dinner for students.”

!Students developed a higher comfort level with faculty and alumni

2) The Outcome, cont’d

• “The conversations about why each of us came to U of T and what makes us come back as a student or as an alumnus were eye-opening.”

• “U of T is as cosmopolitan inside and outside the classroom.”

!Students experienced the broader U of T community

2) The Outcome, cont’d

• Benefit to Students:!Meet alumni and faculty in a relaxed, informal

setting

!Establish connections beyond immediate peer or academic group

!Develop a higher comfort level with faculty and alumni

!Experience the broader U of T community

3) Conclusions & the Future

• Students were touched by the personal and intimate nature of these events

• Impressed that faculty members attend

• Appreciated hosts’ efforts and generosity

• All participants were highly receptive to this all-inclusive, community-building approach

3) Conclusions & the Future, cont’d

• Next steps:– “Dinner With 12 Strangers” Kit to be made

available to all Divisions

– Will help even small alumni offices to run the program

– Will help expand the number of dinners, participants, and the impact of the program

Last Word

• “I thoroughly enjoyed the Dinner with 12 Strangers and would recommend it to anyone in the U of T community.”