Berkeley College opens third food pantry, amid 'invisible epidemic' of student hunger
WOODLAND PARK — Ellen Zitis was astounded to learn while working at the College of William and Mary a few years ago that even the nationally ranked Virginia school with a billion-dollar endowment had students who often went hungry. The college opened a food pantry in 2019 to try to help.
"We were puzzled, for the campus had century-old buildings ... the manicured lawns," Zitis, now the executive director of the Berkeley College Foundation, told an audience at the school's local campus on Wednesday. Berkeley, which has three locations in New Jersey and another in Manhattan, opened its third food pantry this week, joining hundreds of other colleges around the U.S. that have been forced to deal with a growing need in their communities.
"If this higher-education campus has food insecurity, then other campuses have food insecurity," Zitis told well-wishers at Wednesday's official pantry kickoff. She called hunger at colleges the "invisible epidemic."
Berkeley opened its first food pantry on its Newark campus in 2019, made possible through a $10,000 donation from the foundation.
In 2011, 88 of the country's roughly 4,000 universities hosted food pantries. In 2021, amid a pandemic that pushed more people toward the economic edge, the number was up to 700, including Berkeley, Zitis said. The foundation established a second pantry at the college’s midtown Manhattan campus in February 2021.
"The last thing a student needs to worry about is food," she said.
Also read:Families in need skip meals to pay other expenses. Food pantries also in dire straits
For Piscataway's Jocelyn Gonzalez, the single mom of a 16-year-old, and a business administration student at Berkeley's Woodbridge campus, the school's assistance has been a "blessing."
Last fall, Berkeley via its virtual pantry delivered food to her in Woodbridge. It was an immense help for a busy work-study student who usually gets to campus around 9 a.m. and doesn't return home till 6 p.m.
"I really appreciate the canned veggies and rice," she said. "It has helped so much."
With a bit of protein like chicken and fresh veggies, Gonzalez said, she can make a meal for her daughter and herself.
"It allows me to do my classwork at night," she said, adding that after she graduates from Berkeley next year with her associate's degree, she plans to finish her bachelor's at Rutgers University.
Ty Gaines, chief operating officer of the Woodland Park campus, said there's no means testing to use the pantry.
"Hunger can make it hard to focus and be successful," Gaines said.
In all, Berkeley officials figure that somewhere between 30% and 50% of their students could benefit from the pantries, which are supported by the foundation as well as the Community Food Bank of New Jersey and private companies like ShopRite. That figures fits with national estimates that one-third of college undergrads are food-insecure, officials said.
The Woodland Park pantry is open Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 6 p.m. for walk-ins during the fall semester, but can be available as needed for emergencies.
Additionally online requests for food can be made by students twice a month. The orders are delivered to a student's home campus. The Office of Student Development and Campus Life also offers a “Grab and Go” option once a month, with themed bags of food, such as breakfasts, dinners and Thanksgiving meals.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Berkeley College in NJ opens third food pantry for students
