Facts & Stats

STUDENTS ARE HUNGRY

Food insecurity cuts across all demographic statuses, enrollment levels, and geographic locations. Empty cupboards and scrapping by are a way a life for many students. These stressors affect student success and in the long term, impact learning, grades, graduation, and time to degree.

Hunger and food insecurity are a growing problem on college campuses. The rising cost of a college education and the increasing number of nontraditional students mean that more students are living on a shoestring budget. Many of today’s students must find a way to provide for their own living expenses while also paying for their education. Contrary to the stereotype, today’s typical student is not a recent high school graduate who lives in a dormitory and is supported by his or her parents. The reality is much more complicated.

• Four out of five students work part-time jobs, averaging 19 hours per week, while attending college.
• Only 18% of students are able to cover their college expenses by working a job. Instead, 41% depend on financial aid to cover their college expenses and 16% utilize scholarships.
• Less than one in four students could be categorized as having parents who are able to pay all of their college expenses.

By addressing food insecurity on campus, you can serve a human service and an educational need. Please help support the Food Pantry thru food or monetary donations. You can make the difference to help suppress food insecurity and support Students Success!

 

 

Source: https://cufba.org/resources/

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SNAP Eligibility Expansion

The latest Federal Coronavirus Relief Legislation expands SNAP eligibility for college students during the public health emergency. Specifically, students approved to participate in federal or state work study, even if the students are not actively participating in the work study, are now eligible to apply, as are students that have an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) of $0 for the current academic year, which is calculated in the students’ FAFSA.

Also, the SNAP application process is now completely online. The attached flier includes the link for students to access and complete the application. The online application now includes a document uploading tool, so students no longer need to go to the appropriate county office to drop off applications and student verification forms.

Students applying for SNAP under the (2) new eligibility criteria, should obtain a letter from the college that states his/her status as they relate to work study and expected family contribution, uploading the letter to the online application.

Finally, Legal Services of New Jersey has offered to provide assistance to qualifying community college students who:

1. Have questions about SNAP eligibility; 2. Have questions about the SNAP application; and/or 3. Have applied for SNAP but have been denied.

Students can visit https://lsnjlawhotline.org/ to request support from Legal Services of New Jersey.

MCCC hopes this information and resources are helpful.

SNAP College Students Fact Sheet (PDF)

 

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