Dan Simons Joins Alumni and Students at GW Roundtable 

Last night, Dan Simons, co-owner of Farmers Restaurant Group and alumni of The George Washington University, joined other alumni for an evening of roundtable discussions and a networking reception for current MBA students. 

The Alumni Roundtables are a signature GW student-alumni event and part of a three week MBA orientation known as “C Suite.” The event was designed to give students the opportunity to interact with alumni leaders from various industries and discuss recent business trends, challenges, and opportunities.  

According to Dan, the MBA students at the roundtable were highly motivated, excellent listeners, and passionate about their dreams and visions. He said, “It’s always rewarding spending time with students. GW brings together a fascinating group of alums, and it’s as interesting and developmental for me listening to the other alums as it is engaging with the MBA students. Throughout the evening, I fielded questions about our company culture, how Farmers Restaurant Group started, what’s the secret ingredient to our success, what’s my favorite food, what’s my biggest regret, my most important lesson, and more. It’s nice to share our company’s commitment to mission, and hear such an enthusiastic response. It was also nice that a few of the students at the Roundtable had enjoyed our Founding Farmers grilled cheese, tomato soup, and beignets earlier that day for lunch!” 

Other alumni at the event that led roundtable discussions were: Marcia Bullard, Founding Editor of USA Today, Shawn Brain, Senior Director for Global Brand Marketing for Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, and Ari Isaacman Bevacqua, Growth Strategy Editor at the New York Times.  

The evening also included a networking reception, career advice from alumni, and culminated in a facilitated joint discussion across all of the roundtables.