University of Missouri to close bed-and-breakfast

COLUMBIA, Mo. — The University of Missouri plans to close a bed-and-breakfast that has been a business and a way to educate hospitality students for more than 20 years.

The Gathering Place Bed & Breakfast, across from the Columbia campus, will close in December. It’s one of several programs being closed or reduced as the university responds to budget cuts.

The College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, which oversees the university’s hospitality program, said it was closing the business because it didn’t meet educational expectations.

The Columbia Missourian reported the university hoped students would get managerial and operational experience at the business, but students generally worked breakfast service and cleaning up rooms.

Missouri expects to save about $150,000 annually by closing the bed-and-breakfast. The hospitality program will continue.

Information from: Columbia Missourian, http://www.columbiamissourian.com