Abigail (Spencer) Charpentier ’95
The Story
Hotel Ezra Cornell 69 – 1994
Abigail Spencer – Human Resources Director
HEC 69, Shattering the Boundaries, continued the momentum from the prior year’s Changing the Paradigm, following the spirit of developing HEC into more of an industry conference. Having HEC stand as an important industry professional conference would take years to evolve, but the foundation of this new look and feel for HEC was constructed in this mid-1990’s timeframe. The HEC Board established a new Education Director position and introduced the idea of having a student keynote speaker.
Hotel Ezra Cornell 70 – 1995
Abigail Spencer – Managing Director
The educational events of HEC 70, Mosaic of Time, looked back to hospitality traditions of the past and forward to the trends of the future. Sessions included the growing hospitality segment of long-term care; an assessment of the ethical movement through the ages; opportunities to bolster the ranks of minority managers in hospitality; effective managerial listening, and the digital ocean of wireless communication. Guests had the opportunity to try running the rooms division and sales department in the CHESS simulation. The programming culminated with a panel that aimed to bridge the gap between industry, faculty and students through a dynamic dialogue.
Excerpt from: The Best Ever: Memories of Hotel Ezra Cornell
Abigail Charpentier fell in love with hospitality at a young age, and by sixth grade, she was already dreaming about the Cornell Hotel School. Drawn to hospitality by helping her parents host dinner parties, she saw that bringing people together over a shared meal could build relationships, strengthen conversations with different perspectives, and forge new friendships.
Those early entertaining experiences fostered a fascination in everything from the menu planning and meal preparation to etiquette and protocol designed to welcome people. Her parents also instilled a cultural curiosity in her through their international travels, further fueling her interest in hospitality as she admired and critiqued the different hotels from around the world and imagined herself as the general manager. This interest was nurtured by her father’s colleagues at accounting firm Laventhol & Horwath, many of whom were Cornell Hotel School alumni.
Prep Kitchen Passion Leads to Cornell
Her parents, hoping to dissuade her from the field, insisted she gain industry experience before applying, but their plan backfired horribly when Abigail landed a summer job working in the prep kitchen at Kupchick’s Restaurant, then the nicest, and arguably the only fine dining establishment at the time in Lewes, Delaware. That summer became the first of many working for Kupchick’s owner, David Krasnoff, and the experience only deepened her passion for the pace, opportunity, and cast of characters that gravitate to the industry. Those summers also gave birth to a dream to someday open a restaurant of her own.
Abigail also had a support system encouraging her passion. Among her father’s colleagues were Dave Arnold ‘76, who wrote a recommendation, and Pete Peters, a Michigan State graduate, both of whom encouraged her to focus on Cornell.
At Cornell, Abigail was interviewed by Chris Muller MPS ’85, PhD ’92, who later became her advisor and a trusted faculty mentor. She sought out exposure to food & beverage through classes, teaching assistant roles, and Hotel Ezra Cornell (HEC), in which she participated during all four years of school, including leadership positions on the HEC Board in her junior and senior years. HEC allowed her to learn from “the Patron Saint of Service,” Giuseppe Pezzotti ’84, MPS ’96. His teachings have been unparalleled, from how to prepare for VIP guests to how to run an inclusive board meeting to his countless quotes that accompany history lessons spanning all facets of the human condition. He remains a lifelong mentor and an incredible pal.
HEC 69 Board – 1994
HEC 70 Board of Directors – 1995
Managing Director Abigail Spencer welcomes guests
to Hotel Ezra Cornell 70 – April 1995.
The Hotel School quickly grew to become Abigail’s favorite part of Cornell. The vibrant community created some of her most enduring relationships that continue to thrive to this day: Sarah (Spiewak) Gulla ’95, Dianna (Perkins) Hochkoeppler ’95, Jenn (Henderson) DiSarcina ’95, Raj Chandnani ’95, Bridget (Tyler) Mulcahy ’95, Jim Butler ’96, Peter Tischmann ’95, Vickie (Littler) Kozhushchenko ’96, and Laura (Kornegay) Gilham ’96. No small coincidence that this group all served on the HEC Board together!
Abigail with her family: son Spencer, daughter Alexandra, husband Jean-Luc,
and mother, Sara Spencer.
A Move to Four Seasons, but Aramark Comes Calling
That new chapter was an exciting one. Being the Vice President of People & Culture for the Americas at Four Seasons allowed for a true international lens and the chance to build a new network in a different segment of the industry. Leading through the pandemic in the hotel business created the opportunity to solve problems while constantly iterating as circumstances dictated. Four Seasons leadership leaned into doing this while maintaining its “people first” culture. As the world began to emerge from the shutdown phase of the pandemic, Abigail’s Aramark friends started calling again.
Marc Bruno ’93, now COO of Aramark’s US business, was looking for a new HR leader. Coupled with Aramark CEO John Zillmer’s desire to build a strong succession for the CHRO role, returning to Aramark was a compelling opportunity. Three years after leaving Aramark, Abigail returned to work with Marc again, and 18 months after that move, she was appointed CHRO for the company. And yes, husband, kids, and mom all came back to Philadelphia!
Abigail has been fortunate to work with organizations that have a cadre of Hotelies, such as Carl Mittleman ’97, Margaret (Chow) Fitzgerald ’91, Brian Achilles ’02, Sara Laver ’00, Jacqueline Lee ’02, Julianne Mangano ’21, Ari Rubin ’15, Kim Rossiter ’04, and Bhavana Gupta ’14 at Aramark. At Four Seasons, she was able to jump-start working relationships with Heather Jacobs ’94, Tulio Hochkoeppler ’95, Robert Cima ’83, Scott Taber ’85, Chrissy Gamble ’01, Rich Poskanzer ’03, Michael Hirschler ’99, and Tuesday Baptiste ’15.
Inspiring Future Hospitality Leaders
For several years, Abigail has returned as a guest speaker, always considered a true honor, and it has kept her connection with the school and alumni strong. Most importantly, it has allowed her to develop relationships with the students and faculty who have joined the Hotelie community since her time on campus. This was particularly true for the years she worked as an advisor to the HEC Board. It was through this role that Abigail got to know Richy Petrina ’01, which has led to even more Hotelie connections and escapades.
Supporting the next generation of Hotelies is something Abigail truly enjoys. She is grateful to Professor Tim Hinkin, who first invited her to be an industry coach for the MMH LDP class, and to Professor Tony Simons and now Senior Lecturer Kristina Workman for keeping her on the coach roster. It has been gratifying to give back to the school and students, and she is always eager to foster new relationships with bright, upcoming students. Abigail firmly believes that she has received so much more than she has given during those coaching weekends. She is fortunate to have the opportunity to create deep connections with the other coaches, Tricia (Loberg) Taylor ’95, Ted Teng ’79, Joe Lavin ’75, Bill Minnock ’79, Kelly McGuire MMH ’01, PhD ’07, Howard Wein ’99, and many others over the years.
Abigail’s leadership of on-campus recruitment efforts has put her in the position to have countless career and mentoring conversations with students. Additionally, she has participated in formal mentoring programs sponsored by Women Leadership in Hospitality and the President’s Council of Cornell Women. The rewarding opportunities to inspire confidence and foster growth in fellow Hotelies—by helping them navigate their careers and lives and unlock their potential—are a core part of this community, both while they are students and after graduation.
LDP Coaches: Alex Yaroslavsky MILR ’95, Wendy Pong ’91, Kelly McGuire MMH ’01, PhD ’07, Shalinder Singh MMH ’04, Sheetal Singh, Ted Teng ’79, Ed Evans ’74,
Abigail Charpentier ’95, and Vickie (Littler) Kozhushchenko ’96.
30 Years Later, Still Hanging Out with Hotelies
Sarah (Spiewak) Gulla ’95, Dianna (Perkins) Hochkoeppler ’95, Laura (Kornegay) Gilham ’96, Jenn (Henderson) DiSarcina ’95, Abigail, Vickie (Littler) Kozhushchenko ’96.
Fulton Market District, Chicago, September 2023.
Jenn (Henderson) DiSarcina ’95, Abigail,
Sarah (Spiewak) Gulla ’95, and Vickie (Littler) Kozhushchenko ’96.
Girls’ Trip – Dallas, 2024
Reunion of fellow HEC 70 Boardies at HEC 100. Abigail with Raj Chandnani ’95 and
Peter Tischmann ’95. April 2025.
Fulfilling Laura’s bucket list item to see George Strait in concert, May 2025.
Sarah (Spiewak) Gulla ’95, Abigail, Laura (Kornegay) Gilham ’96,
Vickie (Littler) Kozhushchenko ’96, Jenn (Henderson) DiSarcina ’95.
Dreaming Bigger Dreams
So, what ever happened to that early restaurant ownership dream she had? That itch was partially scratched when she married Jean-Luc, a chef and restauranteur, in 2004. His restaurant was in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, a stone’s throw from where Abigail had her first restaurant job. Happily, Jean-Luc sold the restaurant in 2007, allowing for much more focus on their family as the restaurant sale coincided with the birth of their first child. Abigail and Jean-Luc are now quite content entertaining at home without any need to focus on commercial practicalities. If you are ever in Philadelphia, you’re welcome to come for dinner!
