Clarkson University Student Alex J. Rowe of Saint Albans, Vt. Creates Sustainable Food Donation Program

2016 Dec 30

Clarkson University graduate Alex J. Rowe '16 always knew not to let any food go to waste.

Growing up in Isle La Motte, Vt., Rowe said her father taught her to finish everything on her plate as a courtesy to the millions of people in the United States and around the world who go without food. She didn't see this same practice on campus and decided to work with Clarkson and Aramark, Clarkson's dining service, to do something about it.

Then in her senior year as an environmental engineering student, Rowe reached out to her classmates as well as faculty and staff to gain support. Together they formed Clarkson Feeds, a student organization that aims to recover food that would otherwise go to waste and donate it to a local charity.

Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy Ali Boolani met with Rowe and other students to discuss their distribution network options. After months of research, Clarkson Feeds began their first donations this summer with food left over from the spring semester.

"Our goal is to reduce food waste and to make sure that we can get food to people who need it the most," Boolani said. "We're taking leftover food from Aramark and donating it to Helping Hands of Potsdam to get it out to people who need it."

He added that he has been impressed by the dedication of the students -- including physician assistant studies graduate students Sarah Alwardt of Rochester, N.Y, Allison Cady of Whitesboro, N.Y., and Jennifer Hale of Scotia, N.Y., and innovation & entrepreneurship student Jacqui Hart '16 of Holliston, Mass. -- to launching Clarkson Feeds and helping the community on top of their many academic commitments.

Clarkson Feeds operates by coordinating with Aramark, which collects and stores recoverable food according to certain criteria and notifies Helping Hands of Potsdam of the food available. The student club then picks up the food from Aramark and delivers it to the organization, which distributes the food to families in Potsdam.

Clarkson University educates the leaders of the global economy. One in five alumni already leads as an owner, CEO, VP or equivalent senior executive of a company. With its main campus located in Potsdam, N.Y., and additional graduate program and research facilities in the Capital Region and Beacon, New York, Clarkson is a nationally recognized research university with signature areas of academic excellence and research directed toward the world's pressing issues. Through more than 50 rigorous programs of study in engineering, business, arts, education, sciences and the health professions, the entire learning-living community spans boundaries across disciplines, nations and cultures to build powers of observation, challenge the status quo, and connect discovery and innovation with enterprise.