At the University of Maryland, a campus reuse store is giving unwanted items a new life and helping students save money along the way. Terp to Terp Campus ReUse Store, located in Harford Hall, provides unused and gently used clothes, kitchen appliances, school supplies and more to students at no cost. The program collects donations from students and redistributes them through a storefront and events across campus.
Since launching in 2021, Terp to Terp has served more than 6,000 students and participated in 65 outreach programs, senior criminology and psychology major and Terp to Terp Campus ReUse Store storefront manager Laura Gelsomini said.
Gelsomini shared the program aims to inspire students to think about what they are doing with their waste, while also helping them save money.
Beyond helping students financially, the initiative diverts thousands of pounds of items from landfills each year. The team accepts most donations in good condition and sends unusable clothes to textile recycling instead of landfills.
Program assistant Deniz Gunes, a junior supply chain management and business management major, said the store is meant to be accessible to everyone.
“No questions are asked… and there’s no limit to what students can take,” Gunes said.
The store places limits only on certain individual items, like one coffee maker per appointment, but not on total weight.
Students can get involved by making an appointment, donating their unwanted items or attending events. Gunes suggested that the easiest way, especially for on-campus students, is to leave donations in the yellow bins in residence hall lobbies, which are picked up weekly.
Gelsomini shared that Terp to Terp has an anonymous questionnaire where students can give feedback.
“I couldn’t help but feel emotional as I left the Terp to Terp clothing open shop,” one response said. “The work you do is truly a blessing for students and campus life.”
For Gelsomini, comments like these reflect the program’s larger mission, ensuring students have access to what they need while reducing waste.
“Without Terp to Terp, many students would be facing much more financial insecurity and the university will have an abundance of waste to send to landfill,” Gelsomini said.
Looking ahead, Gelsomini hopes the program will expand to serve more students and further promote reuse and sustainability across campus.