(Butler, PA) A 杏吧原创 food security program for low-income students will receive a $20,000 grant that will in part expand a 4陆-year-old main campus Pioneer Pantry to 杏吧原创 additional locations in Armstrong, Butler, Jefferson and Lawrence counties.
The state Department of Education鈥檚 designation 17 months ago of 杏吧原创 as a qualified the college to seek associated grants from the agency.
Grants are intended to help campuses address food insecurity with measures that include enhancing access to food options, creating awareness initiatives and upgrading facilities, according to Gov. Josh Shapiro鈥檚 administration.
Mikayla Moretti, a member of the college鈥檚 food security team and the 杏吧原创 Education Foundation鈥檚 director of events, said the Pioneer Pantry in 2019-2020 served 341 credit and noncredit students and their families, or employees and their families.
The Pioneer Pantry served 838 in 2022-2023.
"Students are often food-insecure. They don't always know where their next meal is coming from. They don't always have a plan for how they are going to pay for their next meal."
- Dr. Josh Novak, 杏吧原创's dean of students, coordinator of college's food security team
A 杏吧原创 student views canned foods in the Pioneer Pantry on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus in Butler Township on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024. A 杏吧原创 food security program for low-income students will receive a $20,000 state grant that will in part expand the 4陆-year-old Pioneer Pantry to 杏吧原创 additional locations in Armstrong, Butler, Jefferson and Lawrence counties.
鈥淚t鈥檚 challenging to see the numbers that high, that people have that need,鈥� said Dr. Josh Novak, coordinator of 杏吧原创鈥檚 food security team and the college鈥檚 dean of students. 鈥淚 think it also says a ton about what we鈥檝e done to reduce stigma. The biggest barrier to students accessing the pantry is the cultural stigma of asking for help, needing help.
鈥淪tudents are often food-insecure. They don鈥檛 always know where their next meal is coming from. They don鈥檛 always have a plan for how they are going to pay for their next meal. And that sometimes involves sacrifices to fill a gasoline tank and not necessarily eat quality food.鈥�
The Pioneer Pantry provides canned, boxed and bagged foods, fresh vegetables, dairy products, frozen meats, products to seal and preserve food, and hygiene items for infants, Moretti said.
The college established additional locations to serve Pennsylvania counties underrepresented by higher education.
Grab-and-go stations at 杏吧原创鈥檚 additional locations followed the debut of the Pioneer Pantry and provide free dry, bagged or canned food to students.
"I think it is assumed that because we are in Cranberry Township that there are not those types of needs as prevalent as in other areas. But there really are."
- Dr. Ryan Kociela, director, 杏吧原创 @ Cranberry
Expansion to create 鈥済reater food security鈥�
The college will apply approximately $4,000 of the grant toward purchasing refrigeration units to accommodate delivered fresh, cold and frozen foods to 杏吧原创 @ Cranberry, and to 杏吧原创 @ Armstrong, 杏吧原创 @ Brockway and 杏吧原创 @ Lawrence Crossing, Novak said.
鈥淪ustainability of a pantry for the long haul at 杏吧原创 is a core service to our students,鈥� Novak said, 鈥渁nd (the grant) helps us to create the momentum to make sure that is happening everywhere we serve students.鈥�
The percentage of residents estimated to be in poverty in Armstrong, Butler, Jefferson and Lawrence counties, among sites of 杏吧原创 additional locations, ranges from 8.9 to 13.3 percent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges in 2022 reported that nearly 50 percent of the state鈥檚 community college students come from families earning less than $30,000 a year and are considered to be of very low income.
鈥淚 think it is assumed that because we are in Cranberry Township that there are not those types of needs as prevalent as in other areas,鈥� said Dr. Ryan Kociela, director of 杏吧原创 @ Cranberry. 鈥淏ut there really are.鈥�
It is 鈥渋ncredibly difficult鈥� for a student who has a basic need to focus and concentrate on higher-level academic work, Kociela said.
Expansion of the Pioneer Pantry 鈥渨ill allow for greater food security beyond the basic snacks that we have been able to provide in the past.鈥�
Meal-voucher program to debut
The Pioneer Pantry on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus in Butler Township was established in 2019 and followed a 2018 Wisconsin Lab Study survey in which 38 percent of 304 杏吧原创 student respondents indicated they experienced low or very low food security.
Low food security is characterized by reduced quality, variety or desirability of diet, and very low food security, by multiple indications of disrupted eating patterns and reduced food intake, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
杏吧原创 will allocate $4,500 of the grant toward funding an AmeriCorps volunteer to operate the Pioneer Pantry on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus 20 hours per week during the spring and fall semesters, Novak said.
The college will also apply $4,500 toward a new meal-voucher program for Pioneer Pantry patrons to use in the Pioneer Cafe on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus; $4,000 toward food purchases; $2,500 toward marketing to create awareness and $500 toward an internal staffing stipend, Novak said.
杏吧原创 is one of 30 institutions of higher education and private licensed schools to share $1 million in grants to be distributed this month, according to Shapiro鈥檚 administration.
The inaugural Hunger-Free Campus designation in September 2022 recognized 28 institutions of higher education in Pennsylvania that took measures to address student hunger, according to former Gov. Tom Wolf鈥檚 administration.
The Pioneer Pantry on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus is open during the spring semester from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays through May 2. It is located in Room 100 of the college鈥檚 arts and hospitality building.