PELLSTON, Mich. — A chef at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor is bringing his more than three decades of culinary experience to the U-M Biological Station starting April 1.
UMBS hired Thomas Kulczynski as dining hall manager to lead food service operations and staff for the historic research and teaching campus along Douglas Lake in northern Michigan.
Kulczynski of Saline, Mich., will replace Laurie Brooke, who retires June 2 after 16 years of service dedicated to providing food to fuel the long days of students, faculty, researchers and their families from around the world who live at the more than 10,000-acre Biological Station during the spring and summer field season.
“Laurie has built a wonderful kitchen crew team who can handle all the challenges food service brings at them,” said Karie Slavik, associate director of UMBS. “The dining hall is an essential hub that gathers our community together and makes them feel cared for. We thank Laurie for all she has given to us and welcome Thomas to the community.”
Kulczynski’s approach to food is a combination of craft and science, with meals centered around feeling at home.
“Dining does more than sustain the body—it brings people together and helps build a sense of belonging,” Kulczynski said. “That sense of community is just as important as the meal itself.”
Kulczynski has worked for Michigan Dining and Catering for 26 years. The last seven years he has managed five residential dining halls on U-M Main Campus. The handful of locations range from 3,000 covers per service to a more intimate 140 all-girls dorm.
Prior to U-M, Kulczynski worked as a chef at several restaurants in Michigan, an executive chef at two hotels in the state, and a research chef for the national brand Ore-Ida.
He trained at the Culinary Institute of America and Grand Rapids Community College.
From May through September, the dining hall at UMBS in Pellston serves up to 275 residents and offers three meals per day made on site, seven days a week.
“This is a unique opportunity within the University, and I’m grateful to be part of it,” Kulczynski said.
Learn more about Thomas, his deep ties to northern Michigan, and his outdoorsy nature in our Q&A.
Q. Tell us about yourself. What brought you to the University of Michigan Biological Station and to this role?
I first heard about this opportunity more than 20 years ago and have been patiently waiting for the chance to be part of it. The idea of working for the University in northern Michigan has always felt like a perfect fit.
My connection to this type of environment runs deep. I was raised in Roscommon on 10 acres of forest, just a bike ride from Higgins Lake. My father worked for the DNR, so my summers were spent working with Parks, Wildlife, Waterways, and Forestry. I even took summer classes in limnology and forestry at Michigan Tech while I was still in middle school. Outside of that, my time was spent fishing, hunting, hiking, and camping.
My passion for hospitality comes from family. In my hometown alone, we had 65 family members, and our home hosted major holidays—often requiring two seatings to feed everyone. Being a latch-key kid in a pre-internet world, with limited entertainment and my closest friend eight miles away, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen teaching myself to cook from a well-used cookbook and a stocked pantry.
After culinary school, I began my career as an intern at a frozen food manufacturing company, eventually becoming a Research Chef and later working with Ore-Ida in Boise, Idaho. That experience deepened my understanding of food—not just how to cook it, but why techniques work and how ingredients behave. It shaped my approach to food as both craft and science.
In many ways, this role brings together everything that has defined my path: location, community, hospitality, and science.
Q. How do you approach feeding our field station community?
My first priority is to build on the success of the current team. I want to take the time to fully understand the space, the staff, the community, and the service model. From there, I can help identify opportunities for improvement while reinforcing what is already working well. Thoughtful observation and collaboration are key to creating a dining program that truly supports the community.
Q. What’s your philosophy on hospitality in a remote setting? What does a great dining experience look like at UMBS?
Much like University Catering and Michigan Dining, I see the dining hall as the “family room” and the “hearth” of the community. It should be a place where people naturally gather, connect, and feel at home.
Great hospitality starts with people. The staff should be warm, welcoming, and knowledgeable about the food they serve. The food itself should be wholesome, nutritious, and approachable. The environment should feel comfortable and inviting.
At its best, dining does more than sustain the body—it brings people together and helps build a sense of belonging. That sense of community is just as important as the meal itself.
Q. What are you excited to try this season—any menu ideas, local sourcing plans, or “UMBS traditions” you’d like to build?
I’m excited to learn what the team is already doing well and build from there. At the same time, I’m a strong advocate for local and seasonal sourcing. At home, for example, tomatoes are only on my table when they’re coming out of my garden, my milk comes from a farm just a few miles away, and I source proteins locally whenever possible. I look forward to identifying and partnering with nearby producers.
From a menu standpoint, I like to take cues from the community. Much like a residential dining program, many guests will be eating with us regularly, so variety and responsiveness to feedback are essential.
As for traditions, I have a few ideas, but I’m most interested in understanding what already exists within the UMBS community and using those traditions as inspiration to build something meaningful and lasting.
Q. What is your favorite meal to eat? And what is your favorite meal to serve?
As a chef, I get asked this a lot. Honestly, if someone cooks for me, I will appreciate it no matter what it is—I understand the time, effort, and care that goes into preparing a meal. You really can taste that.
One of the most memorable meals I’ve had professionally was at a Thai restaurant in Dearborn, where the chef-owner prepared a series of dishes for a group of us. The standout was a simple fried whole catfish—perfectly cooked, beautifully balanced, and deeply satisfying.
As for a meal I’ve served, one that stands out was a dinner I prepared for a group of fellow chefs: 16-hour braised short ribs, soft polenta with fresh rosemary and Stilton, sautéed Swiss chard, and bourbon maple bread pudding. Years later, one of them told me it was one of the best meals they had ever had. That kind of lasting impact—cooking with care and intention for people you respect—is what makes this work meaningful.
Q. What would you like the UMBS community to know about you?
I’m genuinely excited to begin this next chapter of my career. The location, the close-knit nature of the dining hall, and the diversity of the community all really resonate with me.
I hope to contribute in a meaningful way to an already strong and successful team. This is a unique opportunity within the University, and I’m grateful to be part of it. I’m looking forward to getting to know the community and adding value wherever I can.
The University of Michigan Biological Station serves as a gathering place to learn from the natural world, advance research and education, and inspire action. We leverage over a century of research and transformative experiences to drive discoveries and solutions to benefit Michigan and beyond.
Our vast campus engages all of the senses. Its remote, natural setting nurtures deep thought and scientific discovery.
Founded in 1909, UMBS supports long-term research and education through immersive, field-based courses and features state-of-the-art equipment and facilities for data collection and analysis to help any field researcher be productive. It is where students and scientists from across the globe live and work as a community to learn from the place.
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