Search for colleges, thrive on campus, and advocate for improvements! By Jasmine Hou, GFF Student Advocate College students with food restrictions rely heavily on dining staff to keep them healthy. Although medically required food restrictions must be accommodated under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), capabilities vary greatly by school. It takes serious legwork to ensure you can eat safely in college dining halls. We spoke with  food allergy and celiac organizations to learn about free resources that can help. Click to scroll directly to an organization's section: Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) Gluten-Free Friends (GFF) Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Connection Team (FAACT) Beyond Celiac   National Celiac Association (NCA) MenuTrinfo HIGHLIGHTS at the start of each section include: How-to Guides: Advice for searching for colleges and managing on-campus Don’t Miss: What we think stands out Get Involved: Student opportunities SCHOOL-SPECIFIC  searchable information: FARE Food Allergy College Search Tool   food allergy accommodations snapshot GFF College Reviews from students on campus GFF Curated College Dining News  including campus newspapers MenuTrinfo AllerTrained Colleges and Universities Follow @foodallergy Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) offers extensive material for teens, college students, and dining professionals. They also have resources for resident advisors and non-dining college staff. Tiffany Leon, MS, RD, FARE’s Assistant Director of Training and Professional Programs, formerly worked as a campus dietitian and has hands-on experience managing student accommodations. We discussed FARE’s efforts to help colleges become food allergy champions. For prospective college students, Tiffany suggested using the FARE Food Allergy College Search Tool  alongside student feedback  from Gluten-Free Friends to help research dining programs during the college search.  HIGHLIGHTS How-to Guide FARE Food Allergy College Program   Don’t Miss    FARE Food Allergy College Search Tool  for a snapshot of food allergy accommodations College Dining Manager Resources 2024 FARE Campus Award Winners: Top Campuses for Food Allergies Get Involved Join the TAG (Teen Advisory Group ) Share your experience in looking for a school: College Search + Lived Experience SEE RESOURCES FARE Food Allergy College Program  FARE’s comprehensive college program has been benefiting college students with food allergies since January 2014 and this page is a great entry point for navigating FARE’s vast college resources.  FARE Food Allergy College Search Tool This is the only tool in the country for searching colleges by various food allergy accommodations, such as dining options, housing accommodations, emergency services, and more. Launched in 2020, it now includes over 1200 schools. The data in this search tool is publicly available information. A purple check mark under a college’s name indicates that school staff verified the data. College Resources for Parents and Teens Scroll below the FARE Food Allergy College Search Tool  to find FARE’s advice for teens preparing for college  and navigating dining on campus . You can also connect with other students by joining FARE’s College Food Allergy Support Facebook group . Teens with Food Allergies   FARE helps teens with food allergies connect and learn from each other with moderated virtual talks and teen-contributed content. College Chats FARE holds college chat sessions, featuring special guests who discuss and answer questions regarding food allergies and college. These sessions will be posted on FARE’s webinars page .  GET INVOLVED TAG (Teen Advisory Group) TAG members work on projects, create content for FARE’s website, and take leadership roles in events. This group consists mostly of high school students and younger teens. Individuals who have “graduated” from the TAG program can join the Rising Leaders Committee to work on raising awareness and fundraising projects. INFORM COLLEGE DINING MANAGERS Dining Training FARE offers online FARECheck training programs for dining staff and a free downloadable self-audit to help assess current capabilities. Those who complete FARECheck Instructor Training (FIT) can deliver FARE-developed training to their food service staff. FARE also collaborates with MenuTrinfo  on an annual Food Allergy Safety Symposium (FASS)  which dining managers are encouraged to attend.  College Recognition and Awards    Colleges can be recognized for their dedication to safe food allergy dining with FARE’s certification and award programs. To achieve FARECheck Gold status, schools must meet MenuTrinfo’s  AllerCheck™   requirements, including an annual onsite audit of food safety practices. See 2024 FARE Campus Award Winners: Top Campuses for Food Allergies  to learn about recent winners. Follow @gfreefriends Originally a New Jersey celiac support group, Gluten-Free Friends has become a leading advocacy group for college students with any medically required food restrictions. "By increasing collaboration among food allergy and celiac groups and empowering students with information and advocacy tools,” Sheryl Harpel, Founder, believes all colleges can be persuaded to meet their ADA obligations to provide safe, inclusive dining. Gluten-Free Friends partners with celiac and food allergy groups to gather College Reviews  from students on how well their dietary needs are met in a searchable database.  Encourage college students with food restrictions to complete the GFF College Dining Survey to help build this community-driven platform! HIGHLIGHTS How-to Guides Counseling Students During their College Search   Meet the GF Challenge from College Search to Campus   Don’t Miss    GFF College Reviews  from students in a searchable database GFF Curated College Dining News  searchable by school, advice, trends, and research Student blog posts such as How I Lost Trust in Brandeis University’s Dining Hall Program Get Involved Spread the GFF College Dining Survey Apply for the  GFF Student Advocate Program Submit your blog post story ideas to sharpel@gfreefriends.com SEE RESOURCES Student College Reviews The GFF College Dining Survey  empowers students to share feedback on managing food restrictions at their specific colleges. Searchable by school name, reviews  provide candid on-campus feedback for prospective students. College students can also use this tool to organize feedback when advocating for dining improvements. Everyone can help by sharing the survey  on social media and spreading the GFF Campus Flyer  on college campuses.  Curated College Dining News Gluten-Free Friends curates news related to college and food restrictions, including articles from college newspapers. Articles  are searchable by college name, trends, advice, or research. They also actively encourage college papers to do investigative journalism pieces on what it’s like there for students with food restrictions. College newspapers can use the GFF College Dining Survey  to gather research for their stories. GFF Blog   Content includes guides for the search process, college transition, and guest posts from high school and college students about their experiences. Articles written by Sheryl for FARE's blog and the National Celiac Association (NCA) magazine are also repeated here. Students can submit their story ideas to sharpel@gfreefriends.com . GFF College Advocacy Partners   Links are provided to the college pages of FARE, Beyond Celiac, the National Celiac Association (NCA), and the Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG). These partners all have the GFF College Dining Survey  on their websites. GET INVOLVED GFF Student Advocate Program Volunteer internships are available for high school and college students. These students bring gfreefriends.com  content to the Instagram page @gfreefriends , source college news, conduct community outreach, and work on individual projects. Mentorship is provided to ensure meaningful volunteer experiences. Follow @faactnews Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Connection Team (FAACT) is dedicated to food allergy advocacy, education, and awareness. The FAACT  College Resource Center  helps students and families understand their legal rights and navigate college with food allergies. All legal accommodations shared on FAACT’s website are written and reviewed by legal experts and FAACT's website content is reviewed and approved by FAACT’s Medical Advisory Board. Caroline Moassessi, FAACT's Vice President of Community Relations, recommended starting with  FAACT's Top 7 "Must Do" Steps for College Students , which covers topics often not considered, such as remembering to ask colleges about medical resources and steps for handling emergencies.  HIGHLIGHTS How-to Guides Start with the Top 7 "Must Do" Steps for College Students FAACT's College Toolkit Parents/ Caregivers   Guides and Checklists  Don’t Miss    Access to Legal Resources   Private Facebook Group for Parents/ Caregivers Behavioral Health Resource Center  for self-care and mental health Get Involved Reach out to the FAACT team  to get involved SEE RESOURCES Guides and Checklists  for  Students  and  Parents/ Caregivers FAACT provides comprehensive information and checklists for college search, acceptance, and moving onto campus with different versions for students and parents. They also have information for commuting students.  One-pagers  share approaches to unfamiliar conversations with RAs, dining staff, professors, dates, etcetera. These guides are designed to help lessen the stress of communicating your food allergy needs. Legal Resources When trying to understand federal laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the legal resources provided by FAACT are noteworthy. Case studies about accommodations and other important legal considerations are included on their site. FAACT’s General Counsel and Vice President of Civil Rights Advocacy, Amelia Smith, works with families in the food allergy community to discuss and brainstorm situations. Reach her by email at amelia.smith@foodallergyawareness.org . Private Facebook Groups for Parents/ Caregivers  and College Students FAACT's Parents of High School & College Students with Food Allergies and FAACT’s College Students with Food Allergies provide supportive Facebook communities. FAACT's Roundtable Podcasts   Scan these podcasts for episodes featuring parents and college students, such as   Episode 177: College 'How To' Conversations, Part 1 - Campus Life .  Behavioral Health Resource Center Managing food allergies in a new environment can be challenging. These resources help parents and students take care of their mental health. GET INVOLVED Student Volunteer Opportunities Teens can volunteer at  Camp TAG  or other events, which are updated  here . Caroline also suggests posting about FAACT on social media to help guide others to medically vetted information. INFORM COLLEGE DINING MANAGERS Dining & Food Service FAACT partners with  MenuTrinfo  for food allergy certification and training. Follow @beyondceliac Since 2003,   Beyond Celiac   has been the leading patient advocacy and research-driven celiac disease organization working to drive diagnosis, advance research and accelerate the discovery of new treatments and a cure. By engaging with the top scientists in the field, awarding research grants, and supporting the community, Beyond Celiac envisions a world where people with celiac disease can live healthy lives and eat without fear – a world Beyond Celiac. They offer college search and advocacy resources as well as opportunities for students to get involved in the broader celiac community.  Valerie Kraft, the Director of Community Engagement at Beyond Celiac, explained that their college resources focus   less on specific schools and more on approaches for evaluating dining programs because a school's ability to accommodate students can change over time. See the Gluten-Free Friends interview with Valerie  to learn about her experience advocating for dining improvements as a Vanderbilt student.  HIGHLIGHTS How-to Guide Beyond Celiac’s College Toolkit  Don’t Miss    Episode 14: Celiac Disease in College  featuring Valerie’s own experience Get Involved Email vkraft@beyondceliac.org  about the College Age Ambassadors Program SEE RESOURCES College Toolkit  This guide includes advice from former college students and tips on communicating with dining staff, the accommodations process, eating out, and saving money. If you sign up to download the toolkit, you will receive a free additional PDF containing easy, gluten-free recipes. Podcasts Episode 14: Celiac Disease in College  of the Celiac Straight Talk  podcast series features Valerie’s  experience navigating the college process with celiac disease. GET INVOLVED College Ambassador Program In the Beyond Celiac Ambassador Program, students design projects related to celiac disease and work with Valerie to execute their ideas. Email vkraft@beyondceliac.org  to learn more. Step Beyond Celiac 5K Every year, Beyond Celiac holds its Step Beyond Celiac 5K fundraiser, which will take place in Philadelphia, Boston, and Dallas this year. There is also a virtual option every spring and fall. Follow @nationalceliac National Celiac Association (NCA) is an education and advocacy organization for individuals with celiac disease and non-celiac gluten sensitivities, their families, and communities. NCA provides crucial resources such as regular educational webinars, nationwide support networks, 1:1 phone and email support, a gluten-free food assistance program, top-notch publications such as Gluten-Free Nation and NCA News, and much more. Until there’s a cure…there’s NCA. Carla Carter, OTR/L, Director of Outreach and Programming, suggests c hecking out NCA's college resources page for a Gluten-Free College Survival Guide and additional advice for college students. HIGHLIGHTS How-to Guide Gluten-Free College Survival Guide SEE RESOURCES College Resources page  has a Gluten-Free College Survival Guide and additional advice for college students. Follow on Instagram: @menutrinfo MenuTrinfo is a commercial certification and training company focused on food  allergy safety and transparency. Erica Nehrling, MenuTrinfo’s Director of Client Relations, explained that students are eager for their colleges to offer allergen-free dining stations with AllerCheck™ or Certified Free From™ status, and notes that the “Certified Free From™ designation, in particular, ensures that the station is free from specific ingredients through a more comprehensive, nationally accredited audit covering 120-130 standards. This process also includes monthly allergen testing and quarterly reviews.” Educate college dining managers about this great resource! Don’t Miss    Search for AllerTrained Colleges and Universities MenuTrinfo award winners Jasmine Hou is a freshman at the University of California, Berkeley. She has been a GFF Student Advocate  since June 2023, acting as the @gfreefriends  Instagram Posting Manager and cartoonist. Other Helpful Resources: Allergic Living's U.S. Colleges Directory: Comparing Food Allergy & Gluten-Free Policies

By Tristan Tierce, Founder/CEO of Allergy Voyage I have had life-threatening food allergies for as long as I can remember. When I was ten months old, my mom had me try a sliver of cheese for the first time. I immediately started crying, prompting my parents to rush me to the hospital. I was soon discovered to have a vast amount of dietary restrictions, including dairy, gluten, soy, corn, egg, and many more allergies. It wasn’t until I was four years old that I was diagnosed with Eosinophilic Esophagitis, a condition that made dining out even more difficult. Growing up, my parents never discouraged me from dining out, even if it meant bringing my lunchbox to most places we ate. I confidently advocated for myself, whether explaining my dietary restrictions to a waiter or showing a friend how to use my Epi-Pen. However, when moving into high school, I never wanted to be noticed by others. I stopped sharing my allergies with people, putting myself in dangerous environments around new friends who had no idea how to help me if I had a reaction. Looking back, it’s easy to see how many with dietary restrictions end up feeling isolated and unsupported  - I didn’t want to “burden” others with my experience. " Looking back, it’s easy to see how many with dietary restrictions end up feeling isolated and unsupported." I was forced to re-learn how to speak up for myself when I left Texas to attend Barrett the Honors College at Arizona State University. My advocacy had to start as soon as I met my three roommates who had no experience with severe dietary restrictions. Although the Barrett dorms provided me with my own room, we shared a bathroom, a tiny sink, and a microwave. I stressed that I understood it might be difficult for them to deal with, but my allergies were real, and I truly could not touch the food that they were eating or clean out our shared microwave without wearing rubber gloves. I did not have severe reactions during my first few years on campus and appreciated that my roommates were mostly willing to support me. Meal plans are required freshman year at ASU, and before enrolling I toured the campus, including the Barrett Dining Hall, and met the Campus Dining Dietitian. I was pleased to see the True Balance station and designated allergy captains. Although not always exactly what I needed, these services gave me peace of mind that the dining hall was at least aware of my allergy restrictions. The largest issue that I had while dining with a meal plan was time. Moving back and forth between classes could be challenging, as it wasn’t always feasible for me to flag down an allergy captain or go to the dining hall when the True Balance station happened to be open.  After freshman year, my friends wanted to travel together on an international summer trip - something I had never done before. I had absolutely no idea what resources were available to me. I researched dining options but kept running into walls that made me uncomfortable flying for 16 hours to a new country. Sadly, I decided to skip the trip. This struggle and my past experiences contributed to the idea of Allergy Voyage, a concierge service to help people with food allergies with their dining experiences. One of my majors at ASU was Business Entrepreneurship, which connected me with mentors and faculty members who encouraged me to develop the idea further. I started with the idea of an international concierge service but quickly realized that I needed to focus first on my surrounding area, beginning with Tempe Arizona, and ASU. "I competed in the ASU Venture Devils pitch competitions in front of judges, receiving funding and constantly growing community support to   develop the concept." Over the next three years, I competed in the ASU Venture Devils pitch competitions in front of judges, receiving funding and constantly growing community support to   develop the concept. This led to a partnership with Sun Devil Hospitality itself, meaning that restaurant menus across campus would be hosted on our platform, providing students with easier access to allergen information.  Allergy Voyage enables users to filter hosted menus by the top 9 food allergens. They can discover which allergens are present and potential issues with cross-contact, and   save menus and dishes to their accounts for future access. All of this helps our users feel safer and more confident while dining. Currently, we host menus for 30 local restaurants and plan to have all ASU dining halls and retail locations available by the end of the Spring semester in 2025.  Restaurants are excited about our service as it helps them reach an unusually loyal market. Participating in our onboarding program, they learn to use Allergy Voyage and update allergen and ingredient information as needed. We also share available allergen training programs and featured dining interviews to increase awareness. Each restaurant has a designated point of contact at each restaurant who is available to answer our allergen and ingredient questions when necessary. "Currently, we host menus for 30 local restaurants and plan to have all ASU dining halls and retail locations available by the end of the Spring semester in 2025." Our largest current client is Sun Devil Hospitality on the ASU campus. While I did not originally see Allergy Voyage starting in universities, the opportunity that Sun Devil Hospitality has provided us with is phenomenal, and we hope to leverage our position to assist students at universities across the country. As a recent ASU graduate, I am incredibly proud to help students with dietary restrictions eat more safely on and around campus. We hope to expand Allergy Voyage into a larger concierge service, eventually planning the dining portions of trips for users, enabling filtering menus based on any dietary restriction, and hosting menus across the United States and internationally. Food provides a human connection, allowing for communication across boundaries. People with food allergies should not  be excluded from this conversation. Tristan Tierce is the CEO and Founder of Allergy Voyage.  Tristan recently graduated from Barrett the Honors College at Arizona State University, majoring in Business Entrepreneurship and Art Studies. He is incredibly motivated to continue giving back to the allergic community. ----------------  How well does your college meet YOUR   dietary needs? Please share your advice and feedback in our GFF College Dining Survey  to help inform prospective students and push colleges to improve. Every survey received increases the impact of our advocacy platform!   Gluten Free Friends raises awareness about the importance of safe, inclusive college dining and we welcome student contributors to our blog.  Contact Us   with your story ideas!  Follow us on Instagram   @gfreefriends

by Sheryl Harpel and Hemali Gauri Hemali Gauri, Founder of K12Allergies, is a high school junior committed to food allergy education and awareness. Her organization, K12Allergies , provides an online community for food allergy parents to share their personal journeys and support each other. I talked with the Arkansas student, who is allergic to eggs and garlic, to learn more. What has your personal food allergy journey been like, Hemali? At seven, I started breaking out into eczema/hives all over my body. These flairs would increase on some days and decrease on others. With the help of our physician, my family figured out that these were allergies, but it was a mystery what the allergen could be. After inconclusive skin prick and blood tests, my parents set out on a lengthy elimination diet, removing specific allergens from my diet over weeks at a time and tracking my breakouts in a food journal. They discovered I was allergic to eggs quickly and after a few months, with numerous series of eliminations, came to the conclusion that I was also allergic to garlic. Tell us about your work for the food allergy community. I’ve created a comprehensive source for parents of children with food allergies at K12Allergies.com . We've collected advice and stories from food allergy parents through the diagnosis, living with, and potentially outgrowing, stages of their children’s food allergy journeys, which are all searchable by allergen, reaction, or treatment. There’s also a resources page with over twenty featured organizations, ranging from a device that tracks kids’ EpiPen location s to an “ allergy ID card ' ' translated into different languages to make traveling with food allergies easier. I’m also very engaged in promoting K12Allergies through social media, reaching over four thousand individuals on Instagram and attracting hundreds of site visitors. My passion for raising food allergy education and awareness doesn’t stop online. I’ve partnered with the Hedberg Clinic in Northwest Arkansas to decrease misinformation about food allergies by posting interviews with local professionals. I help coordinate a food allergy-friendly Halloween event at the Fayetteville Public Library. Currently, I’m hosting an allergy-friendly drive for our local food bank. I’m also planning Epinephrine Training and Food Allergy Awareness talks in local public elementary schools. What motivates you? I was inspired by my family’s experiences with food allergies in a small town. My parents didn’t know anyone with food allergies or about available online resources. There was no one to support them, no one I could relate to. A Google search on children’s food allergies just showed generic information. During the initial months of the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak in 2020, when I was isolated at home, the thought of having a resource for parents with kids suffering from various food allergies came to my mind. I decided to reach out to food allergy families asking them to share their experiences of diagnosing their own children's allergies and share suggestions for other parents. I received so much positive feedback about my idea of creating an online community for food allergy parents that I created the website K12Allergies.com. Since then, I’ve been motivated by the amount of good I can do in my local community of Northwest Arkansas and online. Was it hard to create a food allergy organization as a high school student? I definitely faced many challenges, from continuous website breaks to a lack of knowledge about how to incorporate a nonprofit and write bylaws. Sometimes people look at age as an indicator of how much you’ll be able to accomplish, which is wrong. Just because I’m a young person, doesn’t mean I can’t make a positive impact in my community. Usually, people are willing to help me because they see my drive at such a young age. Advice for those who also want to make a difference? Just start. However you can get involved - just start there. It doesn’t have to be creating your own organization as the first step. Progress happens over time, the weeks, months, and years you put in. And after beginning, your motivation becomes sparked by how much good you can do. Also, reach out to people over email, usually they want to help you. Don’t be discouraged by a lack of progress. Work to make the world a better place and fulfill your mission. There have been so many times I’ve been frustrated about one-sided communications and lost opportunities, but then I remind myself about the opportunities I’ve gotten, about all the things K12Allergies has been able to do and that has motivated me to continue. How can people connect with you? I would encourage everyone to check out my website K12Allergies.com , and share your food allergy/celiac story to help future food allergy parents on their journey! You can also follow me @K12Allergies on Instagram and Facebook to keep up with my advocacy work. Thank you, Hemali, for all of your efforts for the food allergy community! We also believe in the power of sharing personal journeys. College students with food allergies or celiac disease, share YOUR story -- complete our GFF College Dining Survey ! Sheryl Harpel Founder, Gluten Free Friends Hemali has been featured on: National Public Radio station's KUAF Community spotlight January 27, 2023 5 News KFSM Educate Arkansas September 15, 2022 Northwest Arkansas NWA Girl Gang Instagram December 6, 2022 Be(A)ware Allergy Friendly Halloween Facebook November 1, 2022

Considering how well a college handles dietary restrictions before making a decision, can help ensure your success on campus! This interview with our founder, Sheryl Harpel, appears in the Summer 2023 Generation GF Magazine. While written for a gluten-free audience, it is helpful for students with any food allergies. Thank you, Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG) , for showcasing our college advocacy efforts. Receive their free publication (3 issues/year) by subscribing here ! --------------

H ow can you evaluate college dining services during your college search and set yourself up for success on campus? This presentation was prepared for a teen celiac support group, but the approach would be consistent for students with food allergies. Watch the video recording (now on YouTube) and follow along with our presentation slides . Related GFF posts... How Well Does Your College Meet the Gluten-Free and Food Allergy Challenge? Colleges Urged to Assess Compliance by Food Allergy, Celiac, and Disability Groups After Rider Case Universities Must Serve Gluten-Free Says US Dept. of Justice Celiac Complicates Your College Search ...and review anonymous surveys from college students for general advice and college-specific feedback

Join our grassroots effort to make dining inclusive and safe for all college students with food restrictions! Volunteer Internship Opportunities for High School and College Students Click to learn more and apply! Email info@gfreefriends.com if you have questions about this program!

by Sheryl Harpel, Founder of Gluten Free Friends This post was featured in FARE's July 2023 Leadership Spotlight FARE (Food Allergy Research and Education) is a GFF College Advocacy Partner -------------- Sheryl Harpel is an Allergy Ally and the founder of Gluten Free Friends , a New Jersey support group and online resource for people with celiac disease. In this guest blog post, Sheryl invites university and college students with food allergies, celiac disease, or gluten intolerance to share their college dining experiences through the GFF College Dining Survey . Feeding college students with medically required food restrictions is required under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Unfortunately, dining capabilities still vary tremendously by school, even when using the same vendor. Sharing your college dining experiences helps to inform high school students during their college search and can pressure schools to improve their food allergen safety practices. We hope you’ll join our grassroots effort to improve dining safety for college students with food allergies. Colleges with the best dining services embrace their responsibility to provide safe, inclusive dining. They recognize that an estimated 7-11% of their students have food allergies, some potentially life-threatening, 1 and actively work to meet their needs. They eliminate top allergens and gluten from dining lines or entire dining halls, provide pre-packaged options from these safe zones to locations across campus, and get student feedback to continually improve. Their dining programs attract students with food allergies to consider their schools. The worst college programs have mandatory meal plans with no safe options. These colleges ignore ADA compliance requirements and risk lawsuits. Students successfully sued Rider University and Lesley University on this basis, forcing these schools to completely transform their dining programs. Most college dining services are somewhere in between. They provide safe options but students report that food choices are limited, repetitive, or nutritionally lacking. The safest dining hall may not be conveniently located near dorm rooms, classes, or where friends congregate. Students on tight budgets or in remote locations struggle to supplement their diets with non-campus food. Insufficient college dining services can lead to food insecurity. “The cost of a meal plan for an academic year usually ranges between $3,000 and $5,500, with the most expensive plans reaching upwards of $9,000” according to US News & World Report. 2 Students often don’t have money left to spend on groceries or restaurants after paying for unused mandatory meal plans. Our NJ celiac support group, Gluten Free Friends, decided to help high school students evaluating colleges get on-campus student feedback about dining programs. We survey college students with food allergies and/or celiac disease and post their candid responses on gfreefriends.com . We started with students in our own support group and the response was so positive that we reached out to the broader celiac and food allergy community and just kept going. In addition to helping high school students, we have found that our surveys can pressure schools to improve. For example, we highlighted a disappointing survey from a freshman with celiac at Western Carolina University (WCU) on our Instagram @gfreefriends and tagged their student newspaper. The newspaper followed up with an article. And now there’s a new WCU dietician working to improve their program. Every survey increases the impact of this resource. FARE , National Celiac Association, and Beyond Celiac now have links to our GFF College Dining Survey on their college-related website pages and encourage college students to participate. By working together, we can improve the college experience for so many students! Volunteer internship opportunities for high school and college students who want to help are posted on our website. Parents can also reach out to me to get involved. Please actively share our GFF College Dining Survey in your food allergy, celiac, and college groups and ask college students to add their voice! -------------- 1. Sicherer, Scott H, MD, FAAAAI. Food allergy in college and university students: Overview and management . UpToDate. Jan 10, 2022. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/food-allergy-in-college-and-university-students-overview-and-management. Accessed May 13, 2023. 2. Wood, Sarah. Paying for Meals at College: What to Know About Costs. U.S. News and World Report . Feb. 9, 2022. https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/paying-for-meals-at-college-what-to-know-about-costs. Accessed May 12, 2023.

Dining change negatively impacts students with food allergies By Brandon Samuels, GFF Student Journalist Living with gluten and dairy allergies has always been a challenge. I cannot just walk into a restaurant and expect to have food to eat. Whether it is going to a birthday party, holiday dinner, or enjoying a meal with friends, finding safe food always requires research and preparation. So when it was time to attend college, I understood that I needed to select an institution that would support my dietary needs. I chose to attend Brandeis University, not only for its academic reputation but also because of its accommodating dining hall program. The stakes were high; I would have to trust dining hall staff members to keep me safe. For most of my freshman year, Brandeis University delivered on its promises. There were clearly labeled options that I could eat, their cafeterias had a station that was rid of the top nine allergens, and they even had a regularly stocked pantry exclusively allocated to students with food allergies. A dedicated dietitian listened to feedback from students and effectively reached out to those with allergies. But a change was coming that would dramatically impact the lives of Brandeis students with food allergies. On April 14, 2022, Brandeis University announced a new contract with Harvest Table Group, officially ending the university’s partnership with Sodexo catering services. At first, I was intrigued by the possibilities of new safe options. And why wouldn’t I be? In Harvest Table’s promotional pamphlet, the company promised that they would be “Keeping students with special diets safe and making them feel included with our personalized order-on-demand program.” But I understood from my college search that dining websites and written materials were often unreliable. I would need to evaluate Harvest Table’s food allergy program for myself. What Brandeis students discovered in the dining halls in August of 2022 was awfully concerning. Long lines wrapped around the cafeteria. Only limited stations were opened, causing frustrated students to wait 20 minutes to get a piece of chicken. While all Brandeis students were inconvenienced by this rocky opening, weak dining processes posed a serious health risk to students with food allergies. It was not long before I met with the new dietitian with a list of my concerns, many of which were beyond her control. A week after our meeting I found out that she had resigned. Although long lines began to dwindle and more stations resurfaced as the months progressed, the situation for students with food allergies worsened. A clear example of this involves the Hive Culinary Studio food court. In January of 2023, Brandeis expanded the Hive’s ordering options and added large signs above each vendor’s station listing allergens. But while the signs emphatically labeled ingredients as gluten-free or dairy-free, the reality could not have been more different. In only the span of a month, I observed clear instances of cross-contamination practices taking place at each station. Staff at La Sabrosa heated gluten-free tortillas in the same pan as whole wheat cheese quesadillas. Employees at Nakiri boiled rice noodles in the same pot as ramen noodles. Not only was the dining staff incapable of keeping the food safe for those with allergies, but they also misled students by promoting these areas as allergy-friendly spaces. For most of my time at Brandeis, I have left the cafeteria hungry. The lack of palatable and safe options has left me searching for other alternatives. During the 2023 spring semester, I missed three classes from severe gastrointestinal issues after eating from these locations and warned my friends with food allergies to be wary about Brandeis’ dining practices. I spent money at the convenience store or cooked my own food. By March of 2023, I completely stopped eating any food from the Hive Culinary Studio. Brandeis advertises allergy-friendly options without actually providing a safe and appetizing dining experience, which is dangerous and unacceptable. We need a reliable dining program at Brandeis that prioritizes student safety. Brandeis should train their dining hall staff, remove false and misleading large allergen labels, and bring in third-party specialists to audit and fix the food allergen program. If Harvest Table Group is unable to promptly meet the needs of students with allergies as advertised, Brandeis should switch dining vendors. Additionally, Brandeis ought to include ongoing student feedback. I do not feel supported when it takes four staff members to provide an ingredients list, or when the only gluten-free bread provided is the texture of sandpaper. Brandeis has not fostered a personal relationship with those that have allergies, rendering students to feel voiceless. This fall, I will mostly avoid the dining halls. I just can’t risk it. I will safely cook my own meals off campus. However, I am deeply concerned for all the other students with allergies that depend on the cafeterias. Food allergies are considered a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act and while Brandeis outsourced dining, they did not forfeit their legal obligations. Students living in Brandeis housing are required to spend up to $8000/year on a meal plan and deserve a dining program that keeps them safe and truly accommodates their dietary restrictions. Overall, I believe that Brandeis is misrepresenting its ability to safely feed students with food allergies. They must do better and act quickly. This GFF Student Advocate Guest Blog Post was written by Brandon Samuels, a junior at Brandeis University in Waltham, MA, studying Politics and Legal Studies. - --------------- G l uten Free Friends works to raise awareness about the importance of safe, inclusive dining for college students with food restrictions. We welcome student contributors to our blog. Go to Contact Us to submit your story ideas! Follow us on Instagram @gfreefriends . We encourage college students with medically required food restrictions to complete our quick survey about your dining program to help inform prospective students and push colleges to improve their food allergy dining programs.

By Abby Spaulding, GFF Student Journalist I want to go to a small college and I envision time spent at the cafeteria with friends and sharing meals together to be an important part of my college life. I am definitely looking for lots of different factors in schools, like academics and social environment, but as someone with celiac disease, eating safely is one of the most important factors for me. I am known for always overpacking when I go on a trip. I want to cover every possibility! Although this has led to many heavy suitcases and isn’t necessarily the best approach for travel, I know that overpacking on the details will only help me as I embark on my college search. So, where to begin? Fortunately, I am part of an active celiac community in Seattle, Washington, through Seattle Children’s Hospital. One of our recent support group meetings was all about managing celiac in college. We heard from current college students about their experiences navigating eating safely at college. Hearing their stories, both positive and negative, has helped me realize that the best way to find out if a college can provide safe eating is to visit in person, if possible. I narrowed down my in-person visits to three colleges that I could either drive or fly to in a few hours. My first step was to look at each college’s website and identify their food service vendor. Some of the larger food service vendors have their own websites where you can learn more about their allergy procedures. Some of the schools also included their daily menus which was very helpful to see. Just from looking at the menus for different schools, I noticed that food offerings varied greatly from school to school, even if they had the same food service. I knew I’d have to visit the schools in person, if possible, to really understand if they could accommodate celiac disease. On those pages, I also found the contact information for each school’s dining manager and reached out via email to ask if they would be willing to give me a tour of the cafeteria and if I could have a meal there during my campus visit. I had positive interactions with all three schools before I even got on campus, and they all were happy to help with this. Once I was on campus the real detail collecting began! I made a list of questions beforehand and added to it after each visit. How wide of a variety of gluten-free foods are offered? Just one allergy-free station or is gluten-free food offered at multiple stations? Can they prepare the food separately so there is a low risk of cross-contamination? Are staff trained on what cross-contamination is? I also asked questions about access to kitchens in dorms and other dining options on campus. I was impressed that one school had eliminated all soy sauce from the entire cafeteria and only used tamari sauce. That school also used gluten-free breading on all fried foods in order to make their fryers gluten-free. Having gluten-free fried chicken and french fries available every day was pretty appealing! One issue that I had never thought about arose when one school let me know that they have minimal dining options on the weekends. I then also asked this question at the other schools I visited. I also asked if they had an on-campus grocery store with gluten-free options so students could get food to make back at their dorm room if needed. One thing that surprised me was that every school I visited was willing to go the extra step to ensure safety not only for students with celiac but all students with allergies. Each school said they would prepare meals individually or keep food in separate refrigerators if that made the students more comfortable. All of the dietary managers at these schools give their cell phone numbers to students with food allergies so they could get help quickly if needed. So, all in all, a good start! I feel encouraged that more and more schools are accommodating students with celiac disease and other food allergies. This is just the beginning so wish me luck! This GFF Student Advocate Guest Blog Post was written by Abby Spaulding, a senior at Bishop Blanchet High School in Seattle, WA. Abby enjoys singing and theater and is a proud member of the Celiac Youth Leadership Council at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Good luck, Abby, and thanks for sharing some of your college search with us! Learn more about evaluating dining during your college search: Meet the Gluten-Free Challenge from College Search to Campus Gluten-Free at College? Yes, It's Possible! Celiac Complicates Your College Search GFF College Dining Survey Responses A or F? For Students with Food Restrictions, Scoring College Dining is Personal Gluten Free Friends works to raise awareness about the importance of safe, inclusive dining for college students with food restrictions. We welcome student contributors to our blog. Go to Contact Us to submit your story ideas! Follow us on Instagram @gfreefriends . We encourage college students with medically required food restrictions to complete our quick survey about your dining program to help inform prospective students and push colleges to improve their food allergy dining programs.

By Sonia Green, GFF Student Journalist As a gluten-free student, I genuinely appreciate that Duke University continues to dedicate so much effort toward having a top food allergy program. I am a junior and have seen some improvements since I first arrived on campus. Frankly, searching for gluten-free food, especially as a freshman, was stressful and challenging, but I am increasingly hopeful that incoming gluten-free students will have an easier time than I did. As a freshman, I ate breakfast and dinner at Marketplace. This is one of the facilities receiving FARECheck Gold status for “allergy-friendly food handling” and, as of last year, also certified as free from tree nuts and peanuts . For lunches, I ate at The Brodhead Center on West Campus, commonly referred to as WU, which was essentially a campus food court where the rest of the students had most of their meals. As a gluten-free student, Marketplace and WU each came with their own set of challenges and risks to assess. Marketplace mostly serves first-year students. It is a nice dining hall. The sweet tea is sweet, they offer non-dairy milk alternatives and there is a mini fridge full of gluten-free breads, bagels, cookies, and snacks. Towards the end of my freshman year, a gluten-free waffle station was also introduced. Everything is labeled so students with food allergies know exactly what they can and cannot eat. As a freshman, all I wanted was to be able to navigate dining options with the same ease as my peers. I found the food labels helpful at first, but then I noticed that they would constantly change. I loved the nacho station, but the tortilla chips and beef would be labeled gluten-free one day and contain gluten the next time it was on the menu. The same thing happened with the Asian Fusion station. I had no idea why the labels changed. Once I realized labels on the same dish could just change for no given reason, I lost confidence in their labeling system. They seemed to randomly be limiting my choices, which led me to instead use my own judgment. This was not the safest practice, but there was nobody there authorized to talk about allergies then, and being gluten-free had already vastly limited my options. Every day, I walked past the pizza and pasta station, which didn’t always have gluten-free pasta on hand. I couldn’t eat the cheeseburgers or chicken sandwiches because they had no gluten-free bun, and when it was Asian Fusion week, I ignored that station since most of the dishes were fried in what appeared to be flour or prepared with regular soy sauce. There were many nights when the only protein I could eat was tofu from the vegan station. One night I had to buy a frozen burrito from Whole Foods because I could only find boiled potatoes and broccoli to eat. No matter where students choose to eat on campus, we should be able to find at least one complete meal which was simply not the case. So much more food would have been available to me freshman year if Marketplace had consistently safe protein options, reliably available gluten-free bread and pasta, used only gluten-free soy sauce, and had trustworthy labeling. Gluten-free options just didn’t seem as important to Duke as nut-free options. At WU, where I ate lunch as a freshman, and most of my meals as a sophomore, there were many more options, such as gluten-free pancakes and pizza. I tried my first burger on campus with an actual bun, not slices of bread from a mini-fridge. I could even enjoy chicken tenders and fries. However, although things were labeled more consistently, cross-contamination was an issue. At breakfast, I watched as biscuits were carried over the pans of eggs, bacon, and potatoes. Sometimes naan would be added to my meal from Tandoor before I had the opportunity to say that I didn’t want it. With Duke’s dining program being one of the best in the nation, it was disappointing to see these procedural errors. Again I also eliminated so many areas because I couldn’t eat anything. I never ate at Panda Express (which has since closed). I ignored Ginger + Soy because I could not eat any of their food (I eventually discovered one type of sushi and one rice bowl I can now enjoy). Even the chicken tenders that I once loved at Krafthouse are no longer gluten-free due to management changes. Now, the award-winning “ Ask Me” program ensures that each dining location always has someone authorized to answer questions on food allergies. As a direct result of feedback from students with allergies, this fall two new eating venues are opening that eliminate the top 9 allergens and gluten altogether, removing the risk of cross-contamination. Many students on campus will appreciate the variety these new dining locations will provide. One is still under construction, but Gothic Grill has already replaced The Loop and seems well-received. As a junior, I have grown pretty adept at navigating Duke dining even if it’s not always very satisfying. I mobile order what I can, but know I must request some things in person. Sometimes the only gluten-free dessert options are unfortunately also vegan. I buy my late-night snacks from the grocery store or eat McDonald's ice cream. The new venues will offer additional safe options without cross-contamination risks. Students with a variety of dietary restrictions should be able to at least find something to eat almost anywhere. However, only time will tell if Duke will adequately increase the amount of safe gluten-free options at Marketplace, where freshmen eat most of their meals, or address cross-contamination concerns at WU. Overall, I am impressed by the steps Duke has taken to ensure students like me can eat three healthy meals a day, but, there is still work to be done to ensure that all food allergies are treated equitably on campus. Given their current trajectory, I am interested to see what comes next. This GFF Student Advocate Guest Blog Post was written by Sonia Green , a junior at Duke University in Durham, NC, studying African & African American Studies and Visual & Media Studies. ---------------- G l uten Free Friends works to raise awareness about the importance of safe, inclusive dining for college students with food restrictions. We welcome student contributors to our blog. Go to Contact Us to submit your story ideas! Follow us on Instagram @gfreefriends . We encourage college students with medically required food restrictions to complete our quick survey about your dining program to help inform prospective students and push colleges to improve their food allergy dining programs.

By Sheryl Harpel, Founder of Gluten Free Friends Valerie Kraft knows that one student has the potential to transform a college dining program. As a Vanderbilt University freshman, she organized students with food restrictions into a Student Allergy Advisory Council. Together, they increased awareness and motivated Vanderbilt to improve their food allergy dining program. By the time Valerie graduated in 2021, Vanderbilt was named Overall Food Allergy Champion for Universities . Vanderbilt won this award again in 2023, demonstrating the lasting impact of Valerie’s efforts. As the Director of Community Engagement for Beyond Celiac, Valerie now helps other college students increase safe dining options at their schools. A firm believer that students should never be afraid to ask their college to meet their dietary needs, Valerie says that If one person puts in the energy to get things started, so many more will benefit! She adds that improvements on one campus can also motivate other colleges to follow. “You have the power,” says Valerie. “The worst thing they can say is ‘no.’ You might as well try, if not for yourself, then for others!” Beyond Celiac is a GFF College Advocacy partner and joins us in encouraging all college students with food restrictions to give feedback on their college dining programs! Watch our interview with Valerie to learn more about how to make change happen on your campus!

by Avery Leppo Over nine years ago, I was diagnosed with celiac disease. I was in second grade and had been suffering from severe headaches, abdominal pain, fatigue, and forceful vomiting. These symptoms caused me to miss school often and retreat socially. Doctors repeatedly dismissed it all as anxiety. After blood work followed by an endoscopy ultimately confirmed that I had celiac, my parents and I met with a dietician and quickly transformed our home into a safe, 100% gluten-free space. Within weeks of altering my diet, I physically felt much better. ​ Receiving a lifelong autoimmune diagnosis at seven years old was challenging and scary. I longed to have a confidante who could help me adjust to my new reality. This is what inspired me to begin Celiac Chat , a mentorship program for kids and teens newly diagnosed with celiac. With support from the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University ,  we provide a virtual safe space to discuss the physical, mental, and social challenges that often accompany living with celiac. By offering resources, and support, and sharing our own celiac stories, we try to ease their transition to a lifelong gluten-free diet. Our hybrid program is based in New York City, but our mentors and mentees mostly connect virtually so they can be located anywhere. We chat about whatever is on our mentees’ minds such as our favorite gluten-free products, ways to order more safely in restaurants or to navigate an upcoming social event. We also emphasize the importance of creating allies by educating our friends and family about celiac, the gluten-free diet, and the risks of cross-contamination. Above all, we help them understand that they are not alone. We provide a glimpse of hope and humor and serve as examples of how they can thrive and live a fulfilling life despite celiac, and also go on to help others. Celiac Chat just launched in September, but over the past five months, we have seen tremendous interest. We are collaborating with over 20 organizations, restaurants, and influencers, have a solid base of email subscribers, and are working hard to reach more parents to increase our mentee numbers. During the annual Celiac Disease Foundation Turkey Trot, team Celiac Chat raised over $600 to help find a cure for celiac disease. Dr. Jacqueline Jossen at The Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University has been very supportive by helping spread the word about Celiac Chat to the community and her patients!  We are currently reviewing mentor applications. Our mentors are interviewed and given guidelines to follow so they are prepared to meet their mentees at any stage in the process and follow their lead about how quickly to move from there. We also continue to improve our website by expanding our resources for both mentors and mentees. Recently, I was on a call with a nine-year-old girl who was diagnosed with celiac a year ago. Before I could ask her anything, she said, “How’s celiac going for you?” I instantly started beaming. Within a couple of sessions, she had not only gained confidence in managing celiac but had found joy in being part of the Celiac Chat community.  I am determined to be a resource and support newly diagnosed children and teens so they feel less alone than I did. I find these connections tremendously rewarding and truly inspirational and hope my mentees and fellow mentors feel the same way. Please check out celiacchat.org  to learn more about the program, and if you have any questions, email info@celiacchat.org !   ----------------  This GFF Student Advocate Guest Blog Post was written by Avery Leppo, a senior at The Dalton School in NYC. Avery is a drummer and guitarist.. She plays softball and loves nature, traveling, working with children, and rooting for the Red Sox! Read more about high school students making a difference: GFF Student Advocate Program High School Student Creates a Community for Food Allergy Parents Twins Publish Celiac Book Before Heading Off to College ----------------  Gluten Free Friends works to raise awareness about the importance of safe, inclusive college dining. We encourage food allergy and celiac advocacy and welcome high school and college student contributors to our blog. Contact Us   with your story ideas!  Follow us on Instagram   @gfreefriends