Jeanne Fry leaves University of Georgia

ATHENS, Ga. — Jeanne Fry left the University of Georgia Food Services to take on a role as director of Sewanee Dining at the University of the South.

Since 2012, Fry had been the executive director of UGA’s program, and  said she was glad to see the completion of the new Bolton Dining Commons facility before leaving for her new position.

“I had always wanted to work at a small private school and am sort of going back to my roots,” she said. “I would not have left Georgia for just any place, but I saw this opportunity and thought it would be a fun next step for me.”

Brian Varin, associate director of meal plan operations, is now serving as the interim executive director of UGA Food Services.

“Jeanne left a great legacy and foundation for us, and we will just continue on with that. We are very grateful for what she provided us with,” he said. “She was here for about 15 years and did a lot of great things for the department.”

Fry said she hired Varin about 12 years ago and is confident that he has a “customer service soul” and students’ interests at heart.

“The students should feel confident with their leadership,” she said.

It will likely be a few months before there is a permanent executive of Food Services, as Robert Holden, who will oversee the search, took over as vice president for auxiliary services this month.

“There are several ways we can go about filling the position,” said George Stafford, executive assistant to the vice president for finance and administration. “The hiring process for it would allow us to do just an internal search if we so choose to, but we will probably do a national search to find someone to lead that operation, as large