NACUFS to announce Grand Prize award winners at annual conference

The National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS) will be announcing the Grand Prize winners of its 2023 Loyal E. Horton Dining Awards, Nutrition Awards and Sustainability Awards on Saturday, July 22, during the NACUFS 2023 National Conference in Baltimore. The Loyal Horton gold, silver and bronze winners as well as the Nutrition and Sustainability Awards winners were announced back in May.

“In honoring recipients of the NACUFS 2023 Loyal E. Horton Dining Awards, Nutrition Awards and Sustainability Awards, we acknowledge the tireless efforts and unwavering dedication of the exceptional individuals and teams who elevate the standard of campus dining across North America,” remarked NACUFS CEO Robert Nelson. “Their innovative approaches and unparalleled passion for culinary excellence demonstrate the unequivocal value of campus dining, and the community, health and well-being it fosters among college students. We proudly congratulate our winners on their outstanding achievements.”

The Loyal Horton Awards are named after a NACUFS founder, past president and highly regarded innovator, and celebrate members' innovative ideas and program implementation in six categories: Residential Dining Concepts, Residential Dining Facility, Residential Dining—Special Event, Retail Sales—Single Concept/Multiple Concepts/Marketplace, Catering—Special Event, and Catering—Online Menu.

Related:68 College & University staffers who made a difference over the past year, Part 2 (I-Q)

A team of six judges and a committee chair examined each entry and awarded gold, silver and bronze in each category. The winners were…

Residential Dining Concepts: Tufts University (Gold), The University of Alabama (Bronze)

Residential Dining Facility: Cornell University (Gold), University of Richmond (Gold), Stevens Institute of Technology (Silver), University of Maryland (Silver), University of Arizona (Bronze), Xavier University (Bronze)

Residential Dining—Special Event: University of North Texas (Gold), Texas Tech University (Gold), University of Massachusetts (Silver), Hendrix College (Silver), University of Ottawa (Bronze), Florida Institute of Technology (Bronze)

Retail Sales—Single Concept/Multiple Concepts/Marketplace: SUNY at Buffalo Campus Dining and Shops (Gold), University of North Texas (Gold), University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (Silver), California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo (Bronze), Stevens Institute of Technology (Bronze), Rollins College (Bronze)

Catering—Special Event: Yale University (Gold), University of North Texas, (Gold), University of Richmond (Gold), Seton Hall University (Silver), University of Michigan (Bronze), Pennsylvania State University (Bronze), United States Naval Academy (Bronze)

Related:42 College & University supervisors who made a difference over the past year, Part 2 (H-Z)

Catering—Online Menu: Montana State University (Silver), University of North Dakota (Bronze)

The NACUFS Nutrition Awards, which recognize outstanding nutrition and wellness programs implemented within collegiate foodservice programs, encompass two categories: Most Innovative Wellness & Nutrition Program and Best Local Foods Recipe. The winners were…

Most Innovative Wellness and Nutrition Program: Duke University (Gold), Washington University in St. Louis (Silver) and University of Maryland (Bronze)

Best Local Foods Recipe: University of Connecticut (Gold), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Silver), Boston College (Bronze).

The NACUFS Sustainability Awards, which recognize the pivotal role dining services has in the overall environmental sustainability and social responsibility of a campus, encompass three categories: Outreach and Education, Procurement Practices and Waste Management. The winners were…

Outreach and Education: University of Michigan (Gold), University of California at Irvine (Silver), University of Chicago (Bronze)

Procurement Practices: Boston College (Silver), University of Montana (Bronze)

Waste Management: Boston University (Gold).