As student hunger persists at colleges, higher education tries out providing free food

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Foxy’s Mobile Market hadn’t even opened yet, and the line to get free food in the Community College of Aurora parking lot already stretched 30 students deep.

At the mobile market’s first visit of the new school year, students could grab potatoes, carrots, celery, Pringles, assorted canned goods, and some refrigerated meat. Staff members also lined up to help those students get connected to federal food assistance, transportation, and other school resources.

Taina Garcia-Reyes, who on that August day worked at the market passing out free red CCA shirts, said it’s a valuable resource, especially for the many students who struggle to feed themselves and their families while juggling school. She knows this very well, because she’s a student who’s experienced food insecurity herself.

“Anytime I talk with other students, I tell them about the mobile market,” she said. “And students know now, it’s OK to go get your bread. Go get your chips.”

The Community College of Aurora has joined the growing number of colleges nationwide providing free food to students, hiring staff to increase food access and erase a commonplace stigma around asking for help.

Many community colleges and universities in Colorado and the nation now provide food assistance to students at a time when food costs have spiked and more students are believed to be experiencing hunger. The pandemic helped highlight the problem, and many schools have committed to continue funding such food resources after federal COVID aid for colleges runs dry later this month.

An estimated 23% of college students in 2020, or about 3.8 million students, experienced food insecurity, according to a federal analysis released in July . The report again shed light on what previous analysis of federal data have shown — that a large share of students struggle to put food on the table. The study reported that about 2.2 million of those 3.8 million students had low food security, or ate less than they should or skipped meals altogether.

And the share who experience student hunger has likely grown in the pandemic’s wake, according to Mark Huelsman, the director of policy and advocacy at The Hope Center at Temple University that studies the barriers college students face.

“This has always been a persistent problem in higher education,” Huelsman said. “The fact that we’re starting to see campuses create ecosystems of support for students, hopefully that means more students will be able to take advantage.”

Food insecurity impacts students in many ways

Before Garcia-Reyes passed out shirts at the mobile market, she grabbed a few groceries for herself and her family.

Garcia-Reyes, 35, started her second try at being a college student in 2021. She and her husband felt it was important for her to finish her education. But it hasn’t been easy.

Helping students put food on the table doesn’t solve every difficulty students face. But Aurora officials know that school serves many students with major challenges to overcome before they can graduate, such as being from low-income backgrounds or the first in their families to go to college.

So the food assistance from Foxy’s Mobile Market and other sources eases an everyday burden and helps students like Garcia-Reyes better manage their studies and lives outside of schools, or even bigger life crises, said Reyna Anaya, senior student affairs officer and dean of student success.

In her second semester, professors noticed Garcia-Reyes was struggling. She’s managed mental health issues her entire life, but after her grandmother in Puerto Rico died after a long illness, she struggled to concentrate on her studies. She also underwent hand surgery.

The food she gets from Foxy’s Mobile Market helps take one big worry off her plate. She also gets benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, a federal nutrition assistance program that provides a food stipend to eligible individuals and families. The school helped her connect to SNAP, which she’s used in the past.

Foxy’s Mobile Market visits the two Aurora campuses twice a month and the school pays about $3,000 for the food on the truck per visit. The school partners with SECOR Cares, a food program for Denver-area families.

The market feeds about 150 students on average every visit to the two campuses, and many have parents, kids, or spouses at home who also benefit, said ​​Megan Dempsey, CCA’s coordinator of basic needs and student wellness.

Garcia-Reyes said school leaders helped “really open my eyes” to ways the school wants to help her meet basic needs like food. The support extends beyond food.

“I want to get my degree and I want to be able to not be stressed. But the stress comes, and what can I do?” she said. “Having that support, to get through it from the college — that’s important.”

More schools make food assistance standard

In Garcia-Reyes’ work-study job with the student advocacy office, students frequently ask her questions about how to get connected to food services such as: How do I apply for resources, is this free, or can I even qualify?

Huelsman said schools expanded food services for college students during the pandemic. The hope from school leaders, especially at public colleges and universities, is that food resources such as pantries eventually become as common as book stores.

“You do see more things like campus food pantries or basic needs centers,” Huelsman said. “They’re shining a light on a problem that had already existed. It was just being ignored before.”

The University of Northern Colorado, Colorado State University, and Fort Lewis College maintain food pantries. Other colleges, such as the Metropolitan University of Denver, have expanded its food pantry in recent years. To get food from such resources, schools only require that students show a valid school identification.

Not every college has a mobile market, but they are becoming increasingly common. Along with its Buff Pantry, the University of Colorado Boulder, the state’s largest school, hosts a mobile food pantry once a month for students, staff, and employees where they can receive up to 30 pounds of food.

Colleges and universities also help use the pantry as a way to assist students in seeing if they qualify for SNAP benefits.

While SNAP is a big program, it presents challenges. For example, college students must work at least 20 hours a week to qualify, the federal government says, and many can’t do that. So Aurora tries to post fliers about food resources around campus, and professors sometimes round up students to take to Foxy’s Mobile Market. And as long as there’s enough supply at the market, the school doesn’t place limits on the amount of food students can take.

“There’s a lot of dignity in not being told you can only have two of these or one of these. So we’re really intentional about that,” said Beau Green, CCA director of student advocacy.

But sometimes, the food colleges like Aurora provide that can help students the most doesn’t necessarily lead to a full stomach.

Garcia-Reyes said she especially likes the school’s snack cabinet. A little food helps her concentrate before class.

“Sometimes I need a snack,” she said. “I mean, that snack cabinet is a hit.”

Jason Gonzales is a reporter covering higher education and the Colorado legislature. Chalkbeat Colorado partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage. Contact Jason at jgonzales@chalkbeat.org .