When Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina, the immediate aftermath revealed the critical role that Campus Dining plays in our university community and beyond. In a two-week response effort during the University’s closure, our dining facilities opened their doors to provide free meals to students, faculty, staff, and affected residents. This session will delve into our response to this crisis, emphasizing how Campus Dining not only fulfilled a fundamental need for nourishment but also acted as a unifying force amid chaos.  We will share insights on mobilizing staff, coordinating meal service, and fostering an inclusive environment that welcomed individuals of all ages and backgrounds. Our team demonstrated remarkable resilience and compassion, stepping away from their own personal challenges to ensure that no one felt alone during this trying time. 

Participants will learn from an example of the logistical planning involved in providing thousands of meals, as well as the emotional impact of our efforts on both the recipients and the staff involved. We will also highlight the collaborative relationships formed with other campus divisions, local organizations, and volunteers, showcasing how community partnerships can amplify outreach and support. This session aims to inspire other dining services to view their role through a lens of community engagement and resilience, reinforcing the notion that food is not just sustenance but a powerful tool for healing and connection in times of crisis. The audience will hear App State’s lived experience but will also have the opportunity to ask questions to explore their own campus’ experiences or challenges.

In a world where AI can manage everything from menu planning to feedback analysis, the real challenge is preserving the human connection that students value most. In this session, AI-Driven, Human-Led: Crafting the Perfect Recipe for Humanity in the AI Revolution, we’ll explore how campus dining teams can embrace AI tools to boost efficiency and marketing efforts, without losing their authentic voice. Discover how to weave human-centered storytelling into AI-enhanced content across different platforms, from idea generation to administrative support to showcasing student experiences. We’ll also dive into how to engage with AI consciously and ethically, ensuring that innovation doesn’t come at the cost of integrity. You’ll leave with actionable strategies to ensure your dining program remains efficient, engaging, and deeply personal.

In this micro-course, Amanda Ewing, Director of Culture & Engagement for the University of Michigan Dining, will introduce how to support inclusive excellence by connecting hospitality and team culture. We will learn about microaggressions, practice bystander intervention, and set personal goals for welcoming guests to your community. We will consider how our identities travel everywhere with us and our guests, and by pausing to consider this, we will consider how a person’s identities might impact how they think about, experience, and make sense of the world. This self-paced course is packed with interactive opportunities and resources as an introduction or a refresher to identity-conscious supervision in hospitality leadership. 

Estimated time for completion: 1 hour

In this short video, Ashley Richardson, a registered dietitian at Ohio State University, discusses the dietary restrictions associated with various religions. She explains the guidelines for kosher and halal diets, as well as the dietary practices in Hinduism and Christianity. The video covers how to accommodate these dietary restrictions within collegiate foodservice, including support for seasonal changes such as the Christian Lent period and Hindu fasting days.

This recorded panel discussion was a collaborative effort presented by three higher educational organizations: the National Association of Campus Card Users (NACCU), the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS), and the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). It explored the crucial theme of community well-being and how it relates to various roles on campus. The discussion was grounded in the understanding that well-being is not a fragmented pursuit. Instead, it emphasizes a holistic approach that considers the whole person, the entire educational experience, the institution as a whole, and the community at large. This comprehensive perspective encourages us to examine the various dimensions of well-being and how they intersect, influencing one another across our diverse roles.

Industry 101: This short document teaches you how to leverage conferences and understand your segment. It also includes helpful tips, takeaways, and frequently asked questions. 

Spend a few minutes to learn more about the college and university market!

NACUFS is providing this training to help you enhance the value of your participation at your upcoming events, and strengthen your relationships with collegiate dining professionals who could be your future customers.

• Learn expert strategies for attracting and engaging attendees.
• Improve booth interactions with best practices for communication and trust-building.
• Discover techniques to maximize your ROI and convert conversations into meaningful business connections.

Your training will cover these topics:

1. SIX KEYS TO YOUR ATTENDEES: Reviewing what attendees care about at trade shows, and the two personality traits you need to show them at the booth to gain their trust.
2. ATTRACTING: Best practices for where to stand and how to behave to attract more attendees to your booth. (Includes a photo slideshow of behaviors to avoid).
3. ENGAGING: Simple icebreaker questions that capture attention and start conversations.
4. QUALIFYING: Incisive questions to quickly uncover an attendee’s challenges, decision-making level, and value to you, and reframe their situation back to them.
5. EDUCATING: Tips for sharing information about you that make it feel relevant, compelling, and memorable to attendees.

Discover how to benchmark customer satisfaction and compare your program with peer institutions using the NACUFS Customer Satisfaction Benchmarking Survey. This survey provides the essential data needed to address key questions regarding student satisfaction.

Designed to offer campus dining leaders real-time insights into student experiences across residential dining halls and retail units. This customizable survey, developed in partnership with Touchwork, evaluates 25 key performance indicators, including food quality, customer service, the dining environment, and more.

With personalized reports and dynamic benchmarking data, you will gain a clear comparative view of your program’s strengths and areas where improvements can enhance student satisfaction.

To make the most of this vital benchmarking tool, be sure to watch this recorded webinar from February 13, 2025, where you will learn how to:

• Plan and customize a survey tailored to your institution’s unique needs.
• Implement best practices for launching the survey and increasing student participation.
• Maximize insights from the survey with real-time benchmarking data to guide strategic decisions

Hear from Kerri Sallusti, Director of Communications and Guest Experience at the University of North Texas, who will share the opportunities and benefits of NACUFS awards and explain step-by-step how to submit for a Loyal E. Horton Award.

The University of North Texas earned 10 prestigious NACUFS Loyal E Horton Awards over the past three years, including seven Gold and three Silver honors for its exceptional dining services. These accolades highlight the university's excellence in areas such as catering, residential dining, and innovative dining programs, with notable wins like Gold for Catering Program of the Year and Residential Special Event of the Year in 2024.

In a world where innovation relies on human connection, leaders must prioritize emotional intelligence to build extraordinary teams. Learn strategies for creating a culture that fosters resilience, creativity, and excellence. Steve Gutzler, a dynamic speaker, author, and executive coach with notable clients such as Microsoft, Seattle Seahawks, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Ritz Carlton, will guide participants through actionable insights for using emotional intelligence to navigate change, enhance staff engagement, and achieve remarkable results in any environment. This session is designed to empower leaders to elevate their effectiveness and create a truly innovative culture.