Attitudes Toward a University Food Insecurity Program

Abstract

Food insecurity affects over 30% of United States college and university students. Furthermore, food insecurity has been linked to poor academic performance among college students. This study assesses attitudes toward a food insecurity program, which was implemented at a large, public university in the US. The Food Insecurity Support Fund (FISF) was created to provide college students experiencing food insecurity with immediate access to food. Researchers conducted thirteen semi-structured interviews with recipients of the FISF to understand its impact on food-insecure college students. The researchers recorded and transcribed the interviews and analyzed them for themes. Results show that FISF has a positive impact by providing food-insecure students access to food, with students indicating a positive change in diet upon receiving support funds. This study may serve as a model for other universities to expand the systems in place to support the mental and physical health and academic performance of their students.