Chris Abayasinghe

University of Notre Dame

Chris Abayasinghe serves as the Senior Director of Campus Dining at the University of Notre Dame since 2013.  In this capacity, he is responsible for an 8,500-student residential dining program providing over 15,000 meals per day, 4 million meals per year; a central food warehousing and production facility; 31 restaurants; campus catering operations that service over 8,000 events a year. Additionally, the department provides resident food service for the Congregation of Holy Cross, including two residences, a seminary, and a nursing home. Most recently, Campus Dining assumed the residential dining program at Holy Cross College.

Chris has broad experience in the collegiate food service industry. Before joining the University, he was assistant director of dining at Williams College located in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Ever a fan of the residential college experience, Chris believes optimal nutrition and well being are critical components for academic success. In 2015, Campus Dining was recognized as one of the “Top Ten” dining programs in the nation by Niche, as well as numerous industry awards for innovation in dining.

In addition to the nutrition benefits of the Mediterranean Diet, local sourcing and sustainable dining intersect well with Chris’s initiatives supporting the teachings espoused in Laudato Si – the encyclical published by Pope Francis on the impact of human behavior in our environment.

Chris received his Masters of Business Administration from Northeastern University and his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics (magna cum laude) from Eastern Connecticut State University concentrating in finance. He is involved in his local community, and as a member of the Menus of Change University Research Collaboration (MCURC) where he serves as co-chair of the Business Sponsorship Council.