With most full-time students home for the summer, Evanston lacks the buzz of activity that defines it during the school year. But on-campus businesses look for creative ways to stay afloat without being wasteful during their slowest season.

During the year, the Norris University Center is a hub for many students. During the summer, however, it significantly curtails its hours in the face of different usage of the building. Judy McHugh, Norris’ general manager for business operations, said the center continues to be used for conferences over the summer. Independent community groups and private parties also rent out space for private events, she said. Norris also hosts summer events including Lunch on the Lake, Summer Cinema 2010 and summer mini-courses.

But the shift into summer is not just business as usual for nuCuisine, Northwestern’s on-campus food service, said Doris Timmen, general manager for resident dining. Like Norris, food service must adapt to find its niche in the slower months, she said.

“We’re not as busy during the summer, so we try to consolidate our operations,” Timmen said. Changes include closing some retail locations for the summer – Lisa’s Cafe and the Great Room are shut down for the season – and operating only four of the campus’ six dining halls. Willard and Elder are both closed due to construction.

“We try to look at what we have, where do we have a potential population,” Timmen said, “but also still be present all over campus.”

While the Foster-Walker Complex is the only resident dining location open to the entire NU community, nuCuisine operates the other three open dining halls for participants in the various camps and conferences that take place on campus over summer, said Timmens.

With summer programs like the National High School Institute and the Center for Talent Development populating the campus with many younger students, the campus must adapt to a different clientele than it sees during the year.

What works great for the kids may be very different from what nuCuisine normally serves to the “more educated palate of our full-time students,” Timmen said.

In terms of managing the scaled back summer operation, Timmen said nuCuisine must follow what’s pragmatic.

“It’s like any business,” she said. “We have a minimum amount of staffing. In most cases, it doesn’t make a difference if a cashier runs up 15 customers or 75 customers” as far as labor costs, Timmens said.

But even with this minimum requirement to keep a location open, staffing hours are significantly reduced over the summer, Timmens said. “If we have adjusted hours of operation, we adjust the working levels as well.”

“This is a union environment,” Timmens said, “so all scheduling is based on seniority.” Some will volunteer to take off the summer or plan vacation time over the summer, but that still leaves the dining service facing workers who must cut hours to meet the more limited summer offerings.

One cashier who works at a retail location on campus said she has reduced her work week from 40 to 37 hours in light of reduced hours of operation. On August 5, when fewer programs are running on campus, she will see her hours further cut to 30 hours until full-time operations resume on September 15.

The cashier, who preferred not to give her full name discussing scheduling hours with nuCuisine, said she had to pick up a second job during the summer in previous years when she did not meet the seniority requirement to stay on board over the summer.

“As much as we would like to keep everywhere open,” Timmen said, “with no foot traffic, that can’t be done.”[email protected] Bose contributed reporting.