Two senior Penn Dining administrators departed University over the summer

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect additional reporting.

Two senior Penn Dining administrators have departed the University, months after two dining halls were found to have violated Philadelphia health code. 

Campus Executive Chef Chris Smith and Hill Dining General Manager Hayden Auguste left Bon Appétit, the company that manages Penn’s dining facilities, Bon Appétit Resident District Manager William Hess informed The Daily Pennsylvanian. Smith worked at Penn since at least October 2014, and Auguste had been at Penn since at least 2020, according to Penn Dining website archives. 

Initially, neither Smith nor Auguste responded to requests for comment.

In a message to the DP after publication, Smith clarified that he did not leave the University due to the health inspections, adding that he did not see the DP's request for comment after his departure. Smith also added that during the time that Auguste worked at Penn from April 2022 to December 2022, Hill did not fail an inspection.

Since their departure, Matthew Oiler has been named the new general manager of Hill House, and Penn plans to name its new campus executive chef "very soon,” according to Penn Business Services Director of Communications and External Relations Barbara Lea-Kruger. Bon Appétit is also hiring numerous sous chefs, according to its careers page.

"[I]t is worth noting that at an operation as large as Penn Dining, it is not unusual for personnel changes to occur, particularly between school years," Hess wrote to the DP.

The personnel changes occurred after two Penn dining halls were found to not be in compliance with the Philadelphia health code last winter. According to the food safety inspection report, Hill House dining was cited for 16 distinct violations, and 1920 Commons was cited for eight violations. The other dining locations remained compliant.

An analysis by the DP also showed that a majority of Penn’s dining locations had at least five violations after the initial inspections. Hill House dining hall passed reinspection in April, and all Penn Dining Facilities were found in compliance with health codes by May 3, including 1920 Commons. 

1920 Commons also closed for renovations during the summer in order to address ventilation issues and other concerns, some of which were raised in the health inspections. The summer updates were part of a series of renovations to the second and third floor that will happen during this fiscal year and the next, according to Penn's capital plan.