Nourishing the broader community.
BU Dining Services contributes beyond the BU community. We conduct fundraising and education programs, work with students hosting theme meals and club awareness, and partner with several organizations, including the ones below.
Food For Free
BU Dining Services has established a partnership with Food for Free, Cambridge, MA. This is a local food recovery network that re-purposes excess food into pre-portioned, “Family Meals” that are healthy and nutritious. Food for Free gathers food donations from catering, retail and residential locations, packages them, and distributes to local families in need. Food for Free programs address not only short-term hunger, but obesity, diet-related disease, and other long-term health effects of food insecurity and poor nutrition.
FeelGood BU
Boston University Students have started a chapter of FeelGood an innovative, non-profit food service and event planning business working towards a world free from suffering, hunger, and gender discrimination by raising money for CHOICE Humanitarian. The student members of FeelGood BU sell 5-star grilled cheese sandwiches once a week at Warren’s Late Nite Cafe. To learn more about FeelGood and the BU student chapter visit their Facebook page.
“Dude it’s for St. Jude”
Boston University Tri-Delta Sorority partners with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Each year Dining Services works with Tri-Delta Sorority to host “Dude, it’s for St. Jude” in the dining room. Partnering with our chefs, the students create a menu inspired by childhood favorites. The evening is filled with food, fun and activities to help raise awareness about the important work and research happening at St. Jude’s.
Oxfam
Every year since 1982, BU has partnered with Oxfam to help fight poverty, hunger, and injustice. We raise contributions through “student fast” programs: BU students volunteer to skip two residence hall meals on designated days, with the cost savings donated to Oxfam. Dining Services works with student groups twice a year to organize sign-up tables in residence dining halls, helping to make these fundraisers a major success.
School-to-Work Programs
Dining Services partners with two schools to work programs to help identify candidates for job placement. These programs are important tools for members of the community who may have trouble finding work or need help to develop the skills they need to find meaningful employment.
Bridges from School to Work provides businesses with customized job placement and workforce development solutions, which enhances both productivity and workforce diversification.
Brookline High School Collaborative places students in jobs to provide real life work experience. The transitional programming provides skills that students can use to build a career in hospitality. We employ five students each year and the students transition into different roles during their tenure at BU. More than 30 students have benefited from this program and several of them have transitioned to full-time roles with Boston University Dining Services.