Too many college students face hunger. Some California lawmakers want to fix that | Opinion

There is the old phrase about “starving college students,” except in today’s world, it really is the case for many.

At Sacramento State, 40% of undergraduate students are considered food insecure. The university’s enrollment is 31,000, with most of those being undergraduates. So far this fall, the ASI Food Pantry has received 5,058 visits by students who can get basics for free, like non-perishables, fresh produce and toiletries.

The Amendola Family Student Cupboard at Fresno State, which is similar to Sacramento State’s Food Pantry, receives an average of 124 visits per day. In the fall semester of 2020, 3,839 students used the resource. Fast forward to spring 2023, and the total zoomed up to 24,532. This fall has seen nearly 11,000 visits so far. Fresno State’s enrollment is about 24,000.

At Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, 39% of students experienced food insecurity as of 2022, according to the university’s Basic Needs Initiative. About 21,000 students are enrolled.

Nearly 60% of UC Merced students in 2022 reported they had low to very low food security. Last year saw 2,900 student visits to the basic needs program, out of an enrollment of 9,000 students.

Food insecurity is defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as “ a lack of consistent access to enough food for every person in a household to live an active, healthy life.”

What constitutes a “meal” for a food-insecure person is much different than the three meals a day most people enjoy. It might be just a bowl of canned soup and some crackers — that’s it. Imagine trying to study for college midterms or final exams on one or two meals a day.

During the COVID pandemic, Congress saw the logic in suspending a rule that limited what low-income college students with at least a half-time schedule could receive in food assistance. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program required students to work at least 20 hours a week to qualify for food help.

The suspension of that requirement ended in May when the COVID public health emergency was declared over. Now, some California congressional members have introduced a bill to permanently end the work requirement so income-qualified students can once again receive SNAP benefits.

Southern California lawmaker Jimmy Gomez introduced House Resolution 3183, and has been joined by Jim Costa of Fresno, Josh Harder of Stockton and more than 100 others, all Democrats.

New York Democratic Sen. Kristen Gillibrand has introduced a companion measure in the Senate.

Students face different challenges today

It may seem reasonable to expect 20-somethings to work 20 hours a week while attending school. But today’s student demographics are much different than the generations of their parents and grandparents.

For one thing, more than a fifth of today’s college students in America — 4 million — are parents. In another startling statistic, 43% of college undergraduates in America in 2016 were low-income, meaning from families with income at or below the federal poverty line.

In his news release announcing the EATS Act of 2023, Gomez said millions of American college students face hunger each day. He cited these statistics from the Hope Center, a research and policy arm of Temple University:

▪ Food insecurity impacts 39% of students at two-year institutions and 29% of students at four-year institutions.

▪ Additionally, 75% of Indigenous, 70% of Black, and 70% of American Indian or Alaska Native students across two- and four-year institutions experience basic needs insecurity, especially food insecurity.

“The fight to end food insecurity is personal to me because my siblings and I relied on free meals at school and during the summers to stay healthy and fed when I was young,” said Gomez, whose office is in Los Angeles. “For so many, higher education is unattainable not just because of sky-rocketing tuition costs but also because of the lack of food security.”

Costa pointed out how “college students across the nation are going hungry, skipping meals and can’t afford to make ends meet — it’s unacceptable. No student should have to choose between food and their textbooks.”

Harder said that a third of college students “face food insecurity, meaning millions of young people aren’t able to live up to their potential. If we want to set future generations up for success, we have to make sure they are getting the nutrition they need.”

Dr. Dilcie Perez, deputy vice chancellor for academic and student affairs at the California State University, said removing the work requirement is significant. “Without this change, many students are forced to make choices between eating, studying or going to work.”

At Fresno State, students often have to work to support not just themselves, but their families as well.

Bipartisan support needed

For decades, the San Joaquin Valley has been one of the nation’s poorest regions. Education is a key means for elevating the living standard of Valley residents.

For that reason, it makes sense to give Valley college students every advantage that the CSU and University of California, state and federal governments can provide — including help with basics like food and toiletries.

Congress should approve modifying SNAP so secondary students who meet low-income qualifications can once again get food assistance without having to work part-time. In particular, Reps. Kevin McCarthy and David Valadao, Republicans representing the south San Joaquin Valley, should take this opportunity to act in a bipartisan manner and back the bill that Democratic colleagues are championing.