Promoting Manners and Etiquette; Things They Don’t Teach You in Class–Business Etiquette Dinner at UMaine April 23
Contact: Michael Carrington 272-7298, Omar Khan, 581-1949, Cathy Marquez, 581-1353
ORONO – Usually, it is parents who badger the kids about good table manners, but at the University of Maine, a student group in the Maine Business School is asking for a little help with etiquette.
They know they’ll soon be swapping their sweatpants and flip flops for more formal attire and job functions that will often involve a formal meal.
Members of the UMaine Chapter of the American Marketing Association will hold their annual business etiquette dinner Wednesday, April 23 at the University Club in Fogler Library. The event starts at 4:30 with a before-dinner reception and covers business etiquette, table manners and proper table settings. At 5:30, faculty, employers and others will join the group for dinner, and a range of conversations about proper dining etiquette.
Opening the night will be Paula Paradis from the Buchanan Alumni House who will discuss proper table setting and the correct way to use utensils, and in what order. Cathy Marquez, from the University of Maine Career Center will lead a PowerPoint discussion on the dos and don’ts of social and dining etiquette
Each table will have a host, some of whom will be employers who have hired UMaine grads over the past years. Each host will lead table discussion of “dos and don’ts” and offer his or her tips regarding formal dining experiences as examples of what is acceptable. The event will certainly be an engaging learning experience and useful for students who are graduating or soon will be.
“It is important that students have taken the time to review their table manners, how they engage others in conversation and all the small details regarding polite and courteous interactions with others,” says Marquez. “It is crucial for all students, not just business students, to learn proper etiquette, even if outside a formal, interview setting. The skills learned now can only help in the future.
“While in college, most students say they usually have very little time to sit down to a meal with groups of people and even when they do, these are almost never formal situations where they are being judged on their manners and their dining etiquette, so an etiquette dinner is a great way to brush up.” Marquez continues. “This event teaches you more than they can learn in a classroom. There are no classes on proper etiquette, how to carry an intelligent conversation or how to have the proper manners. Hands-on experience and actually practicing is the best way to learn etiquette.”
“I think it is great! We are adults now, it is time to act like it and it’s important for us to have something like this. No one wants to be embarrassed when interviewing with someone or sitting down to a nice dinner with your boss, why wouldn’t you want to do something like this?” says Bethany Mealey, a finance/marketing major at UMaine.
A lot of business activity is conducted outside the office today. To be at ease in every situation, no matter how formal, is a valuable lesson indeed.
Students and others who want to learn more about dining etiquette cshould all Michael Carrington at (207) 272.-7298, Cathy Marquez at (207) 581-1359 or Omar Khan at (207) 581-1949, or email on FirstClass.