<p>My D is strongly considering Fordham, but I am very concerned about the food at the Rose Hill campus. Sodexo, the food service provider on Rose Hill campus, failed (miserably) the NY health inspection this spring. See this article from the Fordham Ram online:</p>
<p>*"Health department inspectors cited health violations at four of Fordham’s Sodexo dining facilities during a March 21 examination. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene discovered health code infractions at the Student Deli, Millennium Grille, Ramskeller and Marketplace.</p>
<p>"The inspections unearthed evidence of mice, roaches and improper storage of food, shortcomings that placed Fordham eateries in the lowest grade bracket. The Department of Health utilizes a grading system based on points earned by each infraction, where each violation amasses more points and lowers an establishment’s grade. </p>
<p>"Restaurants scoring between 0-13 are awarded an A, while a restaurant earning between 14-27 points is classified as a B. If an establishment receives marks exceeding 27, the restaurant is given a C.</p>
<p>"With final grades still pending, the Student Deli received a score of 53, the Millennium Grille a 47 and the Ramskeller a 30, with the Health Department classifying any score above 28 as unsatisfactory."*</p>
<p>My S is at Fordham now. Of course this news is disturbing. But it does sound like definitive action is being taken to address the problems. The students are up in arms and I think the university is embarrassed. And just so you know, the main cafeteria, where the vast majority of meals are eaten by students, passed the inspection – the big problems were found in the smaller eateries around campus (not that it is acceptable in any way). Fordham has never had a reputation for great on campus food (the food off campus is amazing though), so as I parent I am hopeful that this will turn into a long-term positive and force the school and meal provider into making improvements. If you are concerned, you should try to get in touch with someone at Fordham to discuss the issue and how they are proceeding (look on the school website under dining services). Congratulations on your D’s acceptance and good luck. My S is very happy at Fordham.</p>
That’s a messed up system. If a restaurant fails, shouldn’t it get an F? Otherwise, people will just see the C displayed and think, “Oh, not that bad.”</p>
<p>happy1: Thank you for your post. I didn’t realize that the main cafeteria passed – I should have looked into this more. That makes a difference. And I appreciate your suggestion to call the manager responsible. I will do that today, and I will ask some very pointed questions during the President’s Spring Preview this Sunday!</p>
<p>I, too, hope they turn it around and that the food becomes better. I was especially concerned by a later report in the Ram that, at a town hall meeting, the manager of the food service made excuses for the failing grades, saying that the inspection criteria are too high, and other things. If he is not taking every step possible to pass, then he shouldn’t be managing the service, and I hope that Fordham administration does something about that.</p>
<p>578920 - I would definitely ask a lot of questions about it at the President’s Spring Preview day. It would probably be good for the university to know that parent’s are paying close attention to this problem. It’s great that you can visit the campus again. As an aside, I would make every effort to go to Father McShane’s speech at the event - you won’t be disappointed.</p>
<p>The cafeteria received an A. The other locations weren’t shut down (unlike Pace University’s cafeteria) because they weren’t deemed dangerous. These locations have since been re-inspected and received As. As a student at fordham, this blip had almost minimal impact on my college experience.</p>
<p>The problems were largely the fault of Sodexo, the food service provider Fordham contracts out, so this issue isn’t really a poor reflection on Fordham’s administrative abilities. </p>
<p>I don’t know, every single day I eat in the caf at Fordham and I’ve never had a problem. If you come visit, take a look at our food options for yourself.</p>