A Partnership for SUCCESS —
Community Service Groups Team with Concessions

By Erin Maddens, Communications Assistant, Marketing Communications

As thousands of fans flocked to fill the seats of Spartan Stadium during the football season, many service organizations from across mid-Michigan also flocked to the stadium as well. Rather than watching the action on the gridiron however, they were hard at work at the concession stands, selling hot dogs and pretzels to hungry fans. At every home football game, as many as 700 volunteers from up to forty community organizations staff the concession stands in return for a percentage of the profits. This system has been in place since the early 1980s, and it is still going strong today.

For the service groups involved, the benefits of participating in this program abound. Guy Procopio, Associate Director of Auxiliary Services, says that working with MSU Concessions is an excellent fundraiser for nonprofit organizations. “Groups have the opportunity to work in an environment where we provide the facility, the product, the event, and the customer base,” Procopio states. The program poses little risk to the organization, and involves no investment other than volunteer hours. “Financially, there are a lot of obvious benefits,” says Procopio. “Through our partnerships, over $300,000 goes back into the community every year, allowing us to help enhance educational experiences outside the University.” Over the years, the program has generated over seven million dollars for countless schools, churches, and other community organizations.

While the revenue generating potential is obviously appealing to service groups, participation in the program offers other, less tangible benefits as well. Maria Giggy, Marketing Communications Marketing and Sales Coordinator, is one of the many volunteers who works at the concession stands, raising money for her organization. “Our school’s Parent-Teacher League has operated a stand at Spartan Stadium for the past two years,” Giggy explains. “Because it’s tied to sports, we find that it’s a great way to involve a group of parents that may not normally be interested in other fundraisers or school activities. This fall we even had our principal and teachers volunteering. It’s really nice to get people away from school and into such an energetic and fun environment — it helps us get to know one another better, as well as promote our school.”

The program is valuable from the University’s standpoint as well. The system’s design reduces the administrative burden on the University and on organizers such as Bill Kost, Assistant Manager of Concessions. “The beauty of it is that rather than staffing individual people and having many various contacts, you only have one contact for each service group, and that contact is responsible for coordinating all the information to the rest of the organization. Communication is streamlined,” says Kost.

Service groups play an integral role in keeping the concession stands running smoothly throughout the year. From horse shows at the Pavilion, to hockey games at Munn Ice Arena, seventy-five percent of all events Concessions supports are staffed by service group members, and with at least 325 event dates per year, this involves an enormous number of volunteers. Currently Concessions works with approximately sixty-five community organizations, and group turnover is low. Impressively, the two longest serving groups have been working with the program for twenty-seven consecutive years. Although most service groups return year after year, Procopio says that they are always looking for aggressive groups. “We always have an open door policy on taking new applications for review.”

For major sporting events such as football, basketball, and hockey, groups must commit to work an entire season. “The benefit for us is that we don’t have to retrain and reschedule groups,” Kost says. “They are responsible for the whole season. This enables them to manage their resources and get people staffed in advance, so it’s really advantageous for both of us.” Groups that are new to the program are assigned to miscellaneous events that periodically come to campus, such as concerts and high school sports tournaments.

Concessions also views the program as a unique way to bring new faces to campus and connect with the community. By volunteering at one of the University’s many events, people who would not ordinarily get the opportunity to experience MSU are given a chance to participate in a fun and beneficial campus activity.

Since its inception, the program has undergone significant changes to better serve the volunteer organizations. From the initial application to subsequent financial reports, the entire program is handled through an online system. After a group works an event, they can log onto their account and view their results the next day, which helps them easily reconcile their budget. Although the system is cutting-edge, Kost says that they are never satisfied with the status-quo, and that they will continue to make improvements as necessary.

Recently the program expanded into other non-traditional arenas. Although initially service groups were only assigned to work at concession stands, they are now often responsible for such areas as parking, gatekeeping, and ushering. Concessions has also expanded its service group program to include sports such as volleyball. “Anywhere there is a need for labor, it could potentially be a good fit for a service group,” says Procopio.

The bottom line is that the service group program is a win-win situation for both the surrounding community and for the University. Procopio sums it up nicely: “If we do well, they do well. It truly is a partnership.”

For more information regarding MSU Concessions or the service group program, please visit www.hfs.msu.edu/concessions.

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