Three New Campus Kitchens Cook up Success

A trio of new Campus Kitchens in Michigan, North Carolina, and Ohio added hundreds of meals and dozens of student volunteers to the growing network of 29 sites that make up The Campus Kitchens Project.

The Campus Kitchen at University of Detroit Mercy – the first Campus Kitchen in Michigan – started operating in the fall and serves nearly 100 meals to clients every week. Located in a community with a high degree of food insecurity, Campus Kitchen leaders chose agencies walking distance from campus in an effort to bridge a connection between campus and the community. Their goal: serve agencies on all four sides of the gated campus.

At Elon University in Elon, North Carolina, students are taking the reigns of their program and leading cooking shifts that began last semester.

“We have so many opportunities as far as programming,” said Holly Anderson, Campus Kitchen coordinator. “I want it to be the students’ project and passion that come out of this. I’m so excited for the possibilities.”

 In February, the Campus Kitchen at Kent State University joined other students fighting hunger and became the first Campus Kitchen in the State of Ohio. Kent students decided to start their own Campus Kitchen after visiting DC Central Kitchen last spring for an alternative spring break trip.

“I have worked with so many compassionate people in preparing for the Campus Kitchen kickoff,” said Christine Sweeney, a student leader at Kent State. “It is so exciting to see everyone coming together to make a change for the better in our community.”