Miami’s Johnson and Wales Adding Vegan Options to Campus Menus & Curriculum

Back in 2011, the University of North Texas made news with its first-ever all vegan cafeteria. Four years later, however, other academic institutions haven’t been particularly quick to adopt vegan-friendly policies.

One exception is Miami’s Johnson and Wales University’s North Miami campus. There, a plant-based lifestyle is spreading like wildfire, as the Miami New Times reports. 

Courtesy of JWU

The move to incorporate more vegan options into both on-campus eating establishments and the culinary’s school’s curriculum has been the work of teaching assistant Kelsey Carter, Director of Culinary Operations, Chris Wagner and other students and teachers who’ve followed suit. Even the school’s Interim Campus President, Larry Rice, is vegan.

“We do have a lot of students and faculty that live with a plant-based diet, so we try to incorporate that and give students an opportunity to expand their knowledge and expertise on vegan cooking,” Carter told the New Times.

On-campus food service hosts a vegan Wednesday, and culinary instructors have started incorporating plant-based techniques into classes. They’ve also started creating more plant-based menus for campus events, and even created an all-vegan Thanksgiving dinner last year for a local radio station.

“I think the vegan movement, if you want to call it that, pretty soon will be a very normal thing,” Wagner told the New Times. “Unfortunately, chefs are very little prepared for that, and hopefully we become an institution that can really pilot that in an educational way and bring that forward a little bit. If students are interested, this can only grow.”

With Johnson and Wales adding vegan options like this, hopefully other schools won’t be too far behind.

“This whole thing is really exploding,” Wagner told the New Times.

Follow Latest Vegan News on Facebook, on Twitter @LatestVeganNews, and Google+ .

Hannah Sentenac

A wizard of words, lover of all living things and vegan mac 'n cheese master, Hannah is the vegan girl behind bharmless.com. Her writing has appeared in Live Happy magazine, the Miami New Times, OneGreenPlanet.com, MindBodyGreen.com, FoodRevolution.org and numerous other publications and websites. She's obsessed with vegan pizza and crop tops, the holidays, and all things Los Angeles. You can reach Hannah directly at hannah@bharmless.com.

Recent Posts

The 10 Best Vegan Breakfast Sandwiches in Los Angeles

It's early in the a.m. Too early. You might be hungover or sleep deprived; at…

3 years ago

Celeb Hotspot PLANTA Expands Its Empire

Courtesy of PLANTA When it comes to plant-based purveyors, PLANTA is one of the hottest…

4 years ago

No Waste Plant-Based Meal Kit Comes to SoCal

There's no debating that meal kits are an awesome way to make life easier in…

4 years ago

You Can Now Have a Meatless Filet Mignon Delivered to Your Door

Courtesy of Juicy Marbles The wait is over: tender, marbled, savory steaks are now on…

4 years ago

Vegan Travel Poised to Blow Up Post-COVID

Veganism is all over the place these days, with everyone from athletes to musicians to…

4 years ago

Your Guide to Cruelty-Free Eyelashes

Photo courtesy of Hayley Kim Design. Dramatic, sweeping lashes are totally on trend, but who…

4 years ago