Download Free Assessing The Causes Of Food Insecurity Among College Students Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Assessing The Causes Of Food Insecurity Among College Students and write the review.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of what food insecurity among college students. Qualitative research regarding food insecurity on college campuses has been growing as we gain a better understanding of how prevalent this issue is and its broad impact on students. However, to our knowledge there are only a handful of studies that examined the student and university staff experience using mixed methods. Qualitative data is needed to gain a deeper understanding of the student experience. OBJECTIVE: To gain deeper insights about students' food insecurity experiences from students themselves and the university staff members who work with them. This insight is necessary to shift university's current policies and approach to helping students experiencing food insecurity and removing the stigma of the "starving student" experience. METHODS: Surveys and interviews were used to collect data from students to gain an understanding of their current living situations and understand their personal experiences accessing food. University staff completed surveys focused on understanding staff's experiences with student food insecurity as well as their attitudes and beliefs about students who experience hunger. RESULTS: The current study found that the financial burden of attending college along with student's food literacy level can contribute to student's food insecurity. Students identified barriers to food access, discussed their perceptions of their food experience, and also discussed who they lean on for support when struggling with food. Student's previous life experiences, food literacy, and social support systems all impact the student food experience. University staff identified similar barriers that they perceive students experience when struggling with hunger and also indicated that they have received little to no training or instruction on how to support students experiencing food insecurity. CONCLUSION: These findings can be used as a building block for developing interventions and the implementation of new resources to help minimize food insecurity on college campuses.
Crutchfield, James Dubick, Amy Ellen Duke-Benfield, Sara Goldrick-Rab, Jordan Herrera, Nicole Hindes, Russell Lowery-Hart, Jennifer J. Maguire, Michael Rosen, Sabrina Sanders, Rachel Sumekh
Background: Food insecurity is defined as the inability to access adequate and nutritious food. There is a relatively small, but growing body of published research on the prevalence of food insecurity among college students, with most studies finding food insecurity prevalence to be higher on college campuses than in states in which studies were conducted. Two published studies at large, public universities in the Southeast found inconsistent rates of food insecurity, 14% and 46%. Objective: To assess rates of food insecurity among college students enrolled in campuses of a large public university system in one state in the Southeastern United States and identify factors that are associated with experiencing food insecurity. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was used. An online survey was administered to eligible, enrolled students (n=38,586), 5,593 responded (14% response rate). After applying exclusion criteria (freshman standing,
Introduction: Food insecurity is the limited or uncertain access to nutritionally adequate foods acquired in a socially acceptable manner in order to live an active and healthy life (Anderson, 1990). It has become a high priority public health issue affecting 12-59% of college students making the transition from late adolescence to young adulthood. Risk factors that impact students' vulnerability to food insecurity have been identified and provide rationale for institutions of higher education to take action to ensure adequate student wellbeing. The purpose of this exploratory study is to assess the prevalence and identify predictors of food insecurity among college students, and identify factors that either facilitate or inhibit food assistance resource use. Methodology:A 37-item, online anonymous survey was distributed to students enrolled at a large, Midwestern public university with a campus food pantry on two of eight campuses. Data were collected using a time-modified version of the USDA Food Security Survey Module, a list of stressors compiled with guidance from the National College Health Assessment, as well as a series of questions about food assistance resource use and perceived barriers to accessing assistance. Descriptive statistics were generated to report the prevalence of food insecurity among the sample, barriers to campus food pantry use, and method of resource use. Additionally, simple and multiple multinomial logistic regression were conducted to identify variables significantly associated with food security status and method of food assistance resource use.Results:Among the sample of 4,188 survey participants (14.4% response rate), 35.7% (n=1,495) were food insecure (18.1% and 17.6% experienced low food security and very low food security, respectively). The highest prevalence of food insecurity was observed in students who are female (n=1,022; 69.8%), between the ages of 18-24 (n=1,268; 84.8%), and undergraduate (n=1,287; 86.1%). Students who had very low food security were nearly twice as likely to report experiencing stress about their ability to get food (OR=3.3) versus stress about paying for school (OR=1.3) and housing (OR=1.2). Though food pantries exist at both campuses, only 23% (n=960) of study participants were aware of them. Several perceived barriers to campus food pantry use included lack of knowledge of how to use the resource (77.1%), not wanting others to know of need (59%), and not wanting to be served by peers (50%). Informal resources, such as attending an event serving food, and borrowing or asking others for help, were the most commonly reported means of food assistance used. Approximately 70% (n=1,022) of food insecure students used these methods to acquire meals, while only 1.2% (n=17) reported use of a formal resource (i.e. local food pantry).Conclusion: With over one-third of study participants reporting food insecurity, it is evident that this prominent public health issue significantly impacts this target population. Interdisciplinary intervention development is necessary to address the prevalence of food insecurity of college students and further understand its association with risk factors, as well as assess the barriers to seeking assistance.
A “bracing and well-argued” study of America’s college debt crisis—“necessary reading for anyone concerned about the fate of American higher education” (Kirkus). College is far too expensive for many people today, and the confusing mix of federal, state, institutional, and private financial aid leaves countless students without the resources they need to pay for it. In Paying the Price, education scholar Sara Goldrick-Rab reveals the devastating effect of these shortfalls. Goldrick-Rab examines a study of 3,000 students who used the support of federal aid and Pell Grants to enroll in public colleges and universities in Wisconsin in 2008. Half the students in the study left college without a degree, while less than 20 percent finished within five years. The cause of their problems, time and again, was lack of money. Unable to afford tuition, books, and living expenses, they worked too many hours at outside jobs, dropped classes, took time off to save money, and even went without adequate food or housing. In many heartbreaking cases, they simply left school—not with a degree, but with crippling debt. Goldrick-Rab combines that data with devastating stories of six individual students, whose struggles make clear the human and financial costs of our convoluted financial aid policies. In the final section of the book, Goldrick-Rab offers a range of possible solutions, from technical improvements to the financial aid application process, to a bold, public sector–focused “first degree free” program. "Honestly one of the most exciting books I've read, because [Goldrick-Rab has] solutions. It's a manual that I'd recommend to anyone out there, if you're a parent, if you're a teacher, if you're a student."—Trevor Noah, The Daily Show
The United States is viewed by the world as a country with plenty of food, yet not all households in America are food secure, meaning access at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life. A proportion of the population experiences food insecurity at some time in a given year because of food deprivation and lack of access to food due to economic resource constraints. Still, food insecurity in the United States is not of the same intensity as in some developing countries. Since 1995 the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has annually published statistics on the extent of food insecurity and food insecurity with hunger in U.S. households. These estimates are based on a survey measure developed by the U.S. Food Security Measurement Project, an ongoing collaboration among federal agencies, academic researchers, and private organizations. USDA requested the Committee on National Statistics of the National Academies to convene a panel of experts to undertake a two-year study in two phases to review at this 10-year mark the concepts and methodology for measuring food insecurity and hunger and the uses of the measure. In Phase 2 of the study the panel was to consider in more depth the issues raised in Phase 1 relating to the concepts and methods used to measure food security and make recommendations as appropriate. The Committee on National Statistics appointed a panel of 10 experts to examine the above issues. In order to provide timely guidance to USDA, the panel issued an interim Phase 1 report, Measuring Food Insecurity and Hunger: Phase 1 Report. That report presented the panel's preliminary assessments of the food security concepts and definitions; the appropriateness of identifying hunger as a severe range of food insecurity in such a survey-based measurement method; questions for measuring these concepts; and the appropriateness of a household survey for regularly monitoring food security in the U.S. population. It provided interim guidance for the continued production of the food security estimates. This final report primarily focuses on the Phase 2 charge. The major findings and conclusions based on the panel's review and deliberations are summarized.
After exploring the limited research available on food insecurity among college students, the goal of this study was to add in-depth information on the resources available to college and university students in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. This survey is an in-depth, qualitative interview with key informants in the student affairs departments at local colleges and universities to learn about: the demographics of institutions of higher education in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and the food resources campuses are providing to the students in need. Finally, the survey uncovered trends in addressing food insecurity among the colleges and universities who participated in the survey.
Food insecurity has long been an issue nationwide, however, there has been little emphasis placed on food insecurity among college students. This thesis employed a cross-sectional survey of 1,170 randomly selected undergraduate students, utilizing a variation of the USDA Adult Food Security Survey Module to assess to determine the prevalence of food insecurity among undergraduate students at East Carolina University, and utilized bivariate analysis to assess the relationship between several demographic, academic and lifestyle variables and food insecurity status, as well as the relationship between food insecurity and academic success. The thesis found that food insecurity status is significantly affected by race, first-generation student status, Pell grant eligibility, financial aid use and use of a meal plan, and found that academic performance is negatively impacted by food insecurity. Additionally, this thesis utilized 10 interviews of undergraduate students to assess how current eating and grocery shopping habits and pre-college food security influenced current food security status and assessed how students cope with food insecurity. The study found that students who were food insecure early in life are more likely to be food insecure in college. Finally, this thesis assessed the feelings about and barriers to using the on-campus food pantry at East Carolina University.
This volume explores the experience of hunger and food insecurity among college students at a large, public university in north Texas. Ninety-two clients of the campus food pantry volunteered to share their experiences through qualitative interviews, allowing the author to develop seven profiles of food insecurity, while at once exploring the impact of childhood food insecurity and various coping strategies. Students highlighted the issues of stigma and shame; the unwillingness to discuss food insecurity with their peers; the physical consequences of hunger and poor nutrition; the associations between mental health and nutrition; the academic sacrifices and motivations to finish their degree in the light of food insecurity; and the potential for raising awareness on campus through university engagement. Henry concludes the book with a discussion of solutions—existing solutions to alleviate food insecurity, student-led suggestions for additional resources, solutions in place at other universities that serve as potential models for similar campuses—and efforts to change federal policy.