Campus Barbecues Make Summer Wednesdays Sizzle
For at least the last 15 years, every Wednesday over the summer at noon the smell of grilled burgers and hot dogs attracts students, faculty, and staff remaining on campus for a communal barbecue outside Johnson Hall of Science.
The barbecue is sponsored by Academic Affairs, and faculty and staff take turns volunteering to shop, cook, and clean. Attendees say it’s a nice way to meet people who stay on campus over the summer—from student summer research Fellows and their faculty advisors to international students, as well as Admissions and First-Year Program interns and staff from a wide array of departments.
“It’s a nice way for everyone on campus to come together at least once a week, talk to each other, and to learn about each other,” says Dana Professor of Neuroscience and Professor of Biology and Psychology Ana Estevez, who is mentoring two St. Lawrence University Fellows and a McNair Scholar this summer. Those Fellows receive a generous stipend and housing through the St. Lawrence University Fellowship program to undertake a research project with a faculty member outside of the regular academic calendar.
Professor of Geology and Biology Judith Nagel-Myers adds that it’s fun to “meet other students that happen to be on campus, not just our own.”
In addition to the grilled fare, which includes vegetarian options, faculty and staff often bring treats of their own, from cookies to pasta salad and even ice cream. There are weeks when nearly 100 people show up.
“The barbecue is such a fun get-together, and it’s something that both the humanities and the STEM majors are part of,” says Kate Pogue ’26, who’s on campus this summer researching chemotherapeutics for a chemistry project.
Carter Banks ’26 is on campus this summer as a McNair Scholar—which awards full room and board as well as a generous stipend for an eight-week summer research project. He says the best part of the barbecue is the comingling of faculty, students, and staff in a casual atmosphere. “It’s nice to get together with people in each department, especially outside a classroom or office setting,” he says.
As you walk along the path from the Student Center to Johnson Hall, before you even see the barbecue, you smell it. Then, you see the grill, loaded with juicy burgers and usually captained by a recognizable professor or staff member. There are clusters of students and professors making conversation around the grill, with many more sitting at tables right beside it. Lots of students opt to sit on the grassy hills or stone steps nearby. It’s a quintessential St. Lawrence scene where everyone interacts as colleagues and friends.
For the small contingent of students and faculty on campus over the summer, the barbecue helps foster close-knit and lasting bonds.
“It’s great because over the summer, there’s a lot fewer people on campus, so it’s great for students, faculty, and staff to have this weekly event where we can see each other and meet people in other departments,” says Assistant Professor of Chemistry Patrick Lutz.
George F. Baker Associate Professor of Chemistry and Department Chair Samuel Tartakoff, who helmed the grill recently, says it’s nice to provide something for students who often cook for themselves over the summer. “This is one of those events where students can have food but also fun,” he says.
Dan French, project manager for Nature Up North, is a weekly fixture at the barbecue, even going so far as to make it part of his “office hours.”
“Sometimes if I need to see a student but can’t find time during the week, I’ll say, ‘See you at the barbecue!’”
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St. Lawrence Fellowship Program Ronald E. McNair Scholars Program
