国产小呦女 Wins Awards for Outstanding Events and Catering Venue
国产小呦女 captured three honors in the 2020 Unique Venues Best of Awards, cementing the university鈥檚 status as a conference and catering venue听of choice.听听听
While the university overall won听Best Venue for Locally Sourced Catering,听the听Washington College of Law鈥檚听(WCL)听Tenleytown听Campus won Best Venue for Conferences. The university also was a runner-up for Best Place for Team Building.听国产小呦女was the only venue out of 100 nominees to win in two categories.听听
In a typical year, the 国产小呦女campus听hosts听more than鈥20,000鈥痸isitors of all ages, attending听about听175 day-long events and 60 overnight groups in the summer.鈥疌onferences range from high-profile government day conferences to overnight youth leadership conferences that听last听two months.听WCL鈥檚 LEED-certified venue, which can accommodate 480, has become one of DC鈥檚 premier spaces for day conferences since its opening in 2016.听听
Unique Venues Best of Awards recognition is especially significant because of the types of venues that were in competition with AU听and WCL, said Kimberly听Araya, director of university conferences and guest services.听听
鈥淚n the Best Venue for Conferences category, WCL was up against a lot of tough competition, ranging from other universities like UCLA to venues that are specifically designed for hosting events to even dude ranches.听We鈥檙e primarily a learning institution鈥攏ot a venue dedicated to hosting outside events鈥攕o for WCL to top all our competition for a win鈥ow!鈥 said听Araya.听听
Araya听attributed听the听wins to听the university鈥檚听extraordinary events staff and听its听dedication to听top-notch customer service and meticulous attention to detail听in meeting visiting听clients鈥 needs.听听听听
鈥淯niversity Conferences听and听Guest Services isn鈥檛 just marketing event spaces.听We are promoting the AU听experience.听While we roll out the red carpet to make our clients鈥 experiences听the best听they听can be for their events, we also view their presence on our campus as an opportunity to highlight the university itself as an ideal place of education for our clients, their children, or the children of people they know,鈥澨齭aid Araya.听听
As anyone who has attended听conference听knows, food offerings make a big difference in the how the day goes. AU鈥檚 win for听Best Venue for Locally Sourced Catering听recognizes the university鈥檚 commitment not just to tasty menus, but to sustainability.听听
The university鈥檚 collaboration with Chartwell鈥檚 Catering and commitment to providing fresh, farm-to-table foods from the university鈥檚 Airlie Farm in Warrenton, Va., to dining halls, retail outlets, and main campus catering was instrumental to 国产小呦女winning this recognition, said听Charles Smith,听assistant听vice听president of听auxiliary听services and听executive听director of Airlie.听听
Airlie Farm provides听vegetables, a variety of meats, and honey to the daily dining and catering experiences at听AU.听鈥淥ur partnership鈥檚 commitment to responsible sourcing and sustainability also extends to utilizing sustainable initiatives to protect and save the environment. This includes听using compostable take-out containers and utensils, tray-less dining to reduce water waste, recycling, and food waste minimization,鈥 said Smith.听
The Airlie Center is听set on more than 300 acres in Warrenton, VA, and is home to the historic Airlie House and a village of guest rooms and meeting facilities.
Unique Venues is 35-year-old venues-marketing company听that specializes in non-conventional meeting and event spaces. Its听annual awards recognize听standout campuses, conference and business centers, sports arenas, and other special event venues.听More than 20,000 meeting and event planners across the US and Canada voted in the awards competition. Award winners were acknowledged听at the听virtual Unique Venues Annual Marketing Conference听in October 2020 and听featured in a special edition of the digital听听