Food insecurity is a major problem on college campuses all across America, yet many either choose to turn a blind eye or are unaware it even exists. Senior Elizabeth Stevens, having personally been affected by food insecurity and realizing a need for change, set about last spring to devise a plan to help solve the problem once and for all for Pacific University students right here on campus.
“I have been aware of this issue for some time,” said Stevens. “I wanted to see if there was anything already in place or something that I could do to help students who were struggling with food insecurity.”
Food insecurity is defined as the lack of regular access to an affordable and nutritious quantity of food.
According to a survey conducted by Stevens last spring that polled Pacific students, more than half of the participants said that they too had experienced food insecurity and would be willing to utilize resources to solve their problems if any were readily available.
“One program I came up with to solve food insecurity here on campus is the meal donation plan,” said Stevens.
The meal donation plan will allow students who already have meal plans to voluntarily donate a number of their guest meals to the program.Thedonatedguest meals will then be distributed according to need and desire to students without meal plans who have signed up for the program to receive the donated guest meals. The students who receive the donated guest meals can then use their Boxer ID cards at the University Center to eat.
Stevens said she hopes to fill everyone’s needs. However, in the case that there are not enough donated guest meals to do so, the guest meals will be evenly distributed to the students who have signed up to receive them.
Stevens and others working on the meal donation plan tabled from 11:00a.m.-1:00p.m. March 28-April 1 in the University Center for students to sign up to give and receive meals. Students receiving donated meals can begin using them on April 5, the official launch date of the meal donation plan.
Students can also donate and sign up to receive meals via email using the email address mealsoncards@gmail.com.
Stevens said she is also in the process of attempting to start up a food bank on campus for students to again try and solve the problem of food insecurity. Although she said there are some difficulties and obstructions in its way, the plan has some backing from the school and local companies to soon possibly become a reality.
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