BSU gave me the background I needed to be a good manager and make good business decisions.
Andrew Pereira, ’18, arrived at Bridgewater State University with a culinary arts degree in hand. But the chef knew he was missing an important element: business savvy.
Bridgewater, he said, was the perfect university to help him become a well-rounded culinarian.
“There’s so much more to it than being a good cook,” said Pereira, who earned a bachelor's degree in business administration, management and operations from Bridgewater. “BSU gave me the background I needed to be a good manager and make good business decisions.”
Now, he frequently relies on knowledge from his BSU classes as an area executive chef for Sodexo, the company that holds the food-services contract on campus. The job requires him to monitor and evaluate purchasing, staffing and inventory to ensure efficient and effective operations.
Pereira oversees cooking at Bridgewater and several other New England universities served by Sodexo. He enjoys returning to his alma mater, where he began his Sodexo career as a student employee at the grill station in Bear’s Den.
Academically, Pereira drew satisfaction from acing a tough course and the plethora of supports, including tutoring through the Academic Achievement Center.
“They helped me get ahead in class and learn more,” he said. “Having those secondary resources is something I always loved about BSU.”
Pereira, who worked at New Bedford restaurants as a teenager, enjoys infusing campus cuisine with elements of his culture. Sodexo encourages its staff and even BSU students to add their family recipes to the menu.
During the spring semester, Pereira cooked his grandmother’s Azorean recipes for tuna melt and pulled pork melt for a meal at Flynn Dining Commons.
“I love working at universities. That has always been the most fun for me,” he said. “The best part is being creative and innovative.”
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