"I Didn't Think That I Would Have to Go Hungry Some Nights": Bringing Students' Basic Needs to the Table

• • Background and Purpose:
    Students, staff, faculty, and administrators from three private liberal arts universities in Minnesota with increasingly diverse student bodies have collaborated to address existing and emerging food access needs on their campuses. Food insecurity on College campuses have mostly been studied within the context of public universities, undermining the needs of growing student bodies in private institutions who bear marginalized identities. This research is an ongoing effort to bring the voices of students on private college campuses who experience basic needs insecurity
  • Methods:
    We conducted our study at three urban universities with total enrollments of approximately 9,356 students across the three campuses. The student body in these institutions are increasingly diverse, with more students identifying as from historically underrepresented backgrounds, including students of color, first-generation (two universities have minority serving institution designation), Pell eligible, and LGBTQIA+. This study builds on student-led initiatives on the three campuses to raise awareness about student poverty and food insecurity among policy makers. Our quantitative findings from this survey, which was previously published, demonstrate students who hold marginalized identities are at increased risk of food insecurity and struggle deeply to address their basic needs. This presentation will share the qualitative findings from the 2022 Food Access Survey (FAS).
    Results:
    Four major themes emerged from our qualitative analysis: (a) Accessibility and acceptability: ample and nutritious food; (b) Availability: time constraints influence basic needs; (c) Affordability: financial resources for basic needs; and (d) Additional support: students identify opportunities for universities to address their basic needs.
  • Conclusions and Implications:
    Our findings highlight the need to include private universities in basic needs and food insecurity conversations for policy and advocacy nationally. Students at all three universities experience food insecurity at similar rates to those at public institutions. To promote health equity and inclusion among our future generations, it is crucial to center and include college students in the conversation of basic needs and food security. While food insecurity is a topic of interest within social work, the research on food insecurity among College students is still scant in the profession. This research hopes to shed light on this critical issue and hopes to spark conversations about how social workers can engage with this issue at all system levels.