Let's pretend to you preparing to leave for college your friend comes over and
hands you a farewell present. You open it up and find several packets of ramen. Now
that's a weird present, don't you think? Well there's this idea among Americans
of the 'hungry college student' where their diet consists of coffee, junk food, and
-you guessed- that ramen. But the idea of a hungry college student goes beyond just
eating these foods on a regular basis. In fact students attending two and
four-year post-secondary institutions are actually going hungry. They don't
have any money to buy, food not even ramen. These students are food
insecure. Food insecurity is when an individual's access to food is limited
meaning they don't always have food to eat. Approximately 11.3 to
13 % of students in college are experiencing this. Some student have to steal
food from the cafeteria, others go days without eating, and some have to choose
between buying food or buying school supplies. One of the issues that
might exacerbate this is the rise of college tuition. Since 2010, tuition has
risen 58.56 %. Student federal aid can't keep up with these prices as
they are not giving enough. For example, on average community college students
get $3,900 in grants. However, they still have to pay
$8,070 for living expenses. With the increase in college tuition and
the lack of federal aid, it has become harder for families or financially
independent students to afford college. Consequently, it puts the family or
student in a tight financial situation which might cause them not to afford
food, thus be food insecure. Some students can't get help from social programs like
SNAP because of requirements. These include working for 20 or more hours a
week, taking care of a child, or being disabled. These factors combined with
others, like homelessness and low wages, exacerbate food insecurity. The problem
is that college students are going hungry and while the food pantries are
being set up in colleges, those in higher education positions are not doing enough
to address and help those in need
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