Food Insecurity In College

Executive Summary:

With the growing desire to become successful and enter the elite ranks of the “College Educated” – many students find themselves taking on the additional challenge of becoming food insecure. Food insecurity is a state in which “consistent access to adequate food is limited by a lack of money and other resources at times during the year.” Good shorthand terms for food insecurity are “struggling to avoid hunger,” “hungry, or at risk of hunger,” and “hungry, or faced by the threat of hunger.”

The issue of food insecurity has been long associated as a problem plaguing our nation, having 14.5 percent of US households’ food insecure. Whereas 13.3 percent of community college students find themselves in the same unfortunate

Each of these are hurdles students must manage as well, in addition to struggling financially before stepping foot on campus. Most college students who experience food insecurity struggle to complete their degrees. They also take on unsurmountable amounts of debt where they borrow money to live as well as attend school. Previously scholarships were need based, now the majority are merit based; leaving many food insecure students

Food insecurity is a household situation, not an individual situation. While food insecurity affects everyone in a household, it may affect them differently. Specific individuals in a home (such as children) may be shielded from some aspects of food insecurity by caregivers. Food insecurity is a year-long measure. It is impossible to say whether a food insecure household is “hungry right now,” “going hungry tonight” or “does not know where their next meal is coming from.” Research shows that food insecurity tends to be episodic and often cyclical. Food insecurity does not mean that a household lacks access to grocery stores, lives in a “food desert,” or does not have time to shop/cook. It only refers to lack of food access based on financial and other resources”.

It was found that levels of food insecurity among students in four-year colleges 13.5 percent, respectively, in 2015—rates that are largely like national levels. However, food insecurity among students enrolled in two-year colleges was higher in the period after the 2008 recession than in 2015, with average rates of food insecurity of 21.2 percent during 2008–14. In 2015, their rate of food insecurity dropped to 13.3