Photo: Webb Chappell
We all know that school can be stressful, especially during finals. To encourage graduate students to take a break during exams, the Graduate School’s Community Builders group and its partnering offices sponsor a bake-off. The idea is simple: Staff and faculty create delicious treats, enough to feed 75 to 100 people, and students eat them. To up the ante a little for bakers, students can vote on which treats they like best. The winner receives bragging rights until the next round of finals and its accompanying bake-off.
For the fall semester bake-off, Jenene Romanucci, senior assistant director of graduate admissions, won with flourless peanut-butter chocolate-chip cookies. Coming in a close second was Liz Saumsiegle, assistant director of international student and scholar services, with red velvet crinkles (above photo).
The bake-off is part of Grad Rejuvenation Week, during which the Community Builders group comes up with various events to help students put aside their studies and relax, even if only for a short while. The sweet tradition began in 2011 and has remained a popular part of the week. “When the students see the baked goods, they say, ‘Oh, you’re doing that again!’” says Debby Leussler, a bake-off organizer and administrative assistant in the Graduate School. “There are no leftovers.” —Donna Coco