Dining Services staff members who have been previously granted editing access can authenticate to The Dash and manage the current day’s menu, and/or manage future menus. When authenticated to the Dash these staff members will find editing options alongside the standard dining menus.

Getting Started

Prior to updating menu information, editors will need to perform the one-time task of subscribing to the individual Google Calendars associated with the dining services location they intend to manage. If an editor is responsible for managing the menus for multiple locations, they’ll need to ensure that they’ve subscribed to each individual calendar.

Subscribing to Calendars (One-time Prerequisite for Editors)

First, ensure that you are not logged into any Google Accounts aside from your Swarthmore College account.
Scroll to the bottom of the navigation sidebar and click the Login button. Note: Mobile users will need to first tap the “hamburger” icon, the three horizontal lines stacked on top of one another that are found in the top-left corner, to reveal the navigation.
After successfully authenticating, the Login button will be replaced with your name. Click the Settings Gear icon that appears to the right of your name.
A modal window, similar to a pop-up menu, will present various settings options. Scroll down to the Edit Calendars section of the modal window. This will list each of the Google Calendars you’ve been authorized to edit. Note: If you expect to have editing access to a calendar, but you don’t see one listed, please request access by submitting a support ticket or sending an email to support@swarthmore.edu.
A new modal window will open, which displays that calendar’s upcoming events. Click the Subscribe to [NAME OF CALENDAR] button.
A new tab will open and take you to Google Calendar. You will be asked to confirm that you’d like to subscribe to the calendar. Once you’ve confirmed your calendar subscription, return to The Dash and follow the next section of documentation.

Managing Dining Menus Through The Dash

There are several methods available for managing dining menus through The Dash. Each of the options outlined below will require that you first log in:

Scroll to the bottom of the navigation sidebar and click the Login button. Note: Mobile users will need to first tap the “hamburger” icon, the three horizontal lines stacked on top of one another that are found in the top-left corner, to reveal the navigation.
After successfully authenticating, the Login button will be replaced with your name.

Additionally, you’ll need to be logged into your Swarthmore Google Workspace account. The easiest way to ensure that you're logged in is to authenticate to your Swarthmore Gmail account.

Opening the Calendar View Modal Window

Option 1: Using the options found in the Menus section

If a location has upcoming Google Calendar events scheduled for that day and you have editing access to the calendar, you should see two buttons, Edit [NAME OF EVENT] and Edit Calendar.
To edit the specific menu you currently see next to these buttons:

Click the Edit [NAME OF EVENT] button.
This will take you to the Google Calendar event, where you can modify the event as needed and save.
The updated information should display on The Dash shortly after saving.

To manage or schedule future events:

Click the Edit Calendar button.
From here you can edit existing events by clicking the Edit [NAME OF EVENT] button associated with a given event or schedule a new event by clicking the green Create New Event button. In both cases you will be taken to the standard Google Calendar editing screen where you may update or create your event.
Save the event.

Option 2: Using the Settings Modal

Scroll to the bottom of the sidebar and click the Settings Gear icon that appears to the right of your name.
A modal window will appear, presenting a number of settings options. Scroll to the Edit Calendars section of the modal window. This will list each of the Google Calendars that you’ve been authorized to edit.
Find the calendar that you’d like to edit and click the View Calendar button. This will open a new modal window, which displays that calendar’s upcoming events.

Editing and Creating Dining Menu Events

With the calendar view modal window open, you can now begin to manage your menu events.

Editing an Existing Event or Event Series

Navigate to the specific event you’d like to edit.
Click on the event to display its details. Then click the Edit [NAME OF EVENT] button.
This will take you to the Google Calendar event, where you can begin to modify the event.
Set the menu event’s start and end times so that they reflect the location/meal's hours of operation.
Save the event by clicking the blue Save button.
- This event
- This and following events
- All events

If the event is part of a series it will ask you if you wish to edit:
Make the appropriate choice for your edit.

The updated information should display on The Dash shortly after saving.

Creating a New Event or Event Series

Click on the green Create New Event button. This will initiate the process of creating a new Google Calendar event in whichever calendar you are currently viewing.
Set the event’s start and end times so that they reflect the location/meal's hours of operation.
Optionally, create a recurring event series by clicking the dropdown that reads “Does not repeat” and setting a recurring schedule for the event. This will be useful for quickly setting up standard meals of operation.
The updated information should display on The Dash shortly after saving.

Suggested Formatting of Dining Menu Copy

Enter menu copy in a format similar to the example below.

Dining Menu Copy as
Entered in Google Calendar

Rendered Dining Menu Copy

Soups
Sweet Potato and Tomato, French Onion

Main Entrees
Pineapple Chicken, Jasmine Rice, Three-Bean Casserole, Pasta with Roasted Vegetables, Spinach, Vegetable Blend

Fajita Bar
Options of Beef, Chicken, or Tofu, with Toppings

Dessert
Rice Krispy Treat Bars

Including Dietary Labels in Menus

The Dash allows Dining Services to easily include dietary labels throughout menu content. The Dash automatically transforms the following text strings into friendly labels if it finds them in a dining menu's calendar event:

Dietary Label Token	Rendered Dietary Label
::gluten-free::
::halal::
::kosher::
::vegan::
::vegetarian::

Directly Managing events through Google Calendars

Anything accidentally added to these calendars WILL display on The Dash. For this reason we recommend sticking to The Dash interface for all but those who consider themselves extremely familiar with Google Calendar. Additionally, we’d like to remind folks that it’s a best practice to log out prior to leaving your computer unattended.

Because the new version of The Dash makes use of Swarthmore College’s Google Workspace, the calendars that you have edit access to will appear in your Google Calendar’s My Calendars section. This means that you can manage upcoming events directly through Google Calendar on any device that has access to the application.