Tag: BBQ



Caption, top of page: Dean Stuart Greenbaum and former Provost Ed Macias at the first Cookout in 1995.

When you see smoke rising from the courtyard between the Knight Center and Knight Hall on Thursday, Sept. 8, don’t worry. Follow your nose to the Olin Welcome Back Cookout and enjoy! It’s been a tradition for more than 20 years, thanks to former dean Stuart Greenbaum.

Not long after he became dean in 1995, Greenbaum decided to host a BBQ for the entire Olin community during the first week of classes. It was a great opportunity for the new dean to meet and greet students and for everyone to celebrate the beginning of the academic year. The event was such a success that it has been an annual event, rain or shine, for more than 20 years.

Part of the tradition includes the Dean, faculty, and staff taking shifts on the chow line to serve burgers and hot dogs from the grill. Veggie burgers, salads, and cake are also on the menu every year.

Interim Dean Kurt Dirks hosts the Cookout this year from 4 -6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 8. For the second year, the Diversity & Inclusion Committee will present an informational fair in the Atrium during the Cookout.

Click thumbnails below to expand image. 

Photo credits: James Byard, Jerry Naunheim Jr., Sid Hastings, WUSTL Photos




Olin’s 20th Annual Welcome Back BBQ served more than 1,000 hungry students, professors, and staff on Aug. 25, 2014.

For the first time in its history, the cookout was held in the Knight Center Courtyard. The 95-plus degree heat drove many guests inside to tables in the new Atrium and the Knight Center Dining Room. An ice sculpture melted quickly as Dean Mahendra Gupta, faculty and staff dished out 730 hamburger and veggie burgers, and 300 hotdogs. Baked beans, salad, cake, and lots of lemonade completed the perfect menu for the first day of classes.

Undergrads and graduate students share their reactions to the renovations in Simon Hall and the new Knight and Bauer Halls in this video.


Videographers: Emma Kane and Tucker Pierce, members of the Class of 2015




Dean Gupta donned an apron and chef’s toque for the 19th annual Olin BBQ on the first day of classes.  This tasty tradition brings together the Olin community with staff and faculty dishing out BBQ chicken, pork, and burgers to hungry students. Whether it’s your very first day at Olin or your fourth year, the BBQ in Simon Hall courtyard is a memorable and delicious way to welcome everyone to school.  The roving Olin video team was there and caught some new and ‘old’ students on camera.