Today, more than one-third of students on campus are struggling with food or housing insecurity. Students cannot be expected to achieve academic success or personal wellness until their basic needs are met. Supporting food and housing security on campus should be a crucial priority, but presidents, provosts, board members, and other senior campus leaders can be unaware of the challenges students face and how these challenges can impact their success.
Start a discussion to educate campus leaders on trends and data about food and housing insecurity. Establish key terms and definitions, combat outdated stereotypes, explore the consequences for basic needs-insecure students, and highlight the impact on institutional priorities.
There are easy ways to strengthen support for students experiencing food insecurity. Break down barriers preventing students from accessing existing support on campus and in the community; then, create structured channels to connect food-insecure students to surplus campus resources.
Are you prepared to support food and housing insecure students on your campus? In this on-demand webconference learn about four ways to strengthen your supports for these students.
From campus dining and recreation to financial aid, staff across campus regularly encounter students who are experiencing food or housing insecurity. Make sure these frontline partners know how to connect students with resources such as the campus food pantry, emergency fund, or community food banks.
Use Basic Needs Referral Postcards to make it as easy as possible for staff to make referrals. The cards include key information about resources for hungry students and how they can reach out…