Colleges across the state are coming up with ways to combat food insecurity among students, and UT Tyler students are doing their part by opening a new food pantry on campus.
Chase Ragland, the university's coordinator for leadership and service, has helped guide students as they set up the pantry in the old coffee shop outside the Muntz Library. He said the primary goal of the pantry is to help students meet their food needs so they can focus on academics.
“About five years ago we started talking about the need,” Ragland said. “College campuses are seeing a lot of students who are food insecure. If they’re not eating, it can cause their GPA to drop.”
Student Government Association Vice President-elect Katie Hicken said the decision to act by the SGA was prompted by a report that some students were sleeping in their cars or in some cases stairwells at the local campus.
“College is hard enough as is, so the institution and its student organizations should be doing all we can to alleviate any kind of struggle or insecurity in the student experience in order to promote student success in all aspects of their lives,” she said.
Graduate assistant Sahil Prasla is managing the pantry as he and Ragland work to gather data about food insecurity among UT Tyler’s 10,000 students.
More than 63 percent of Tyler ISD's students are considered economically disadvantaged and eligible for free or reduced lunch, which means that when they go to college, they may remain food insecure.
Ragland said students can fill out an intake form either online or at the pantry to receive help with nonperishable food, toiletries and other necessities.
“We found that students do go hungry between classes or they’re living paycheck to paycheck because their car broke down and it was a choice between food or the car,” Prasla said. “Student homelessness was also a problem.”
Ragland said campuses such as the University of North Texas, UT Dallas and others have set up food pantries.
The schools often attempt to put the pantries in areas that don’t force students to walk past their peers in order to receive help. Ragland said they want to do what they can to limit any embarrassment a student might experience.
All items in the pantry have been donated by students, faculty, Greek organizations and community members.
The pantry is set up to provide emergency help for students who are unable to get to the grocery store. While they are still collecting data, the pantry already has begun meeting needs for some students. So far it has helped about 20 students.
The campus has one convenience store, and it is not open on weekends. The nearest grocery stores are between 2 and 4 miles away and force students to walk heavily trafficked roadways with no sidewalks.
“When the pantry was created, it was to meet short-term needs,” Prasla said. “We want to be able to make sure students are able to meet their academic needs.”
According to Inside Higher Ed, students who take time off from college are much less likely to finish their degrees.
Ragland said many clients are employed and going to school full time, but with all of the expenses of being a student and paying bills, food can seem low on their list of priorities.
The pantry also directs students to additional resources on campus for help managing stress, juggling responsibilities and meeting other needs.
“These are students who work or live on campus, but they may be having trouble after paying rent,” Ragland said.
The Texas Tribune recently wrote about food insecurity and the expanding food programs at Houston Community College, prompting Rep. Matt Schaefer, R-Tyler, to weigh in on the issue Thursday on Twitter. UT Tyler sits in Schaefer’s District 6. About 14,000 college, graduate or professional-school students reside in the district.
Schaefer responded to The Texas Tribune's CEO Evan Smith, saying the cure to food insecurity in college is called a job.
“If you can’t afford food, then hold off on college for a semester or two. Save up. Then attend college,” Schaefer wrote afterward in a reply to Hicken during the discussion.
Ragland said those wishing to donate can bring items to his office in the Department of Student Life or email the pantry at @PatriotPantry@uttyler.edu
Twitter: @TMT_Cory
Grocery options for UT Tyler students:
2 miles to the nearest Brookshires
2.5 miles to the nearest Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market
About 4 miles to the nearest Wal-Mart Supercenter
The Swoop N’ Go store in the University Center is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday thorugh Thursday and from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday. It is not open on the weekends
The Met (dining hall) is the only dining option on campus on weekends
