Food Insecurity and Displaced Students
Saturday September 9, 2017, The Grand Long Beach
Housing and food insecurity are growing problems on college campuses. The rising cost of tuition and the increasing number of nontraditional students mean that more students are living on a shoestring budget. Today, one in 10 California State University students are homeless or displaced and one in 5 are experiencing food insecurity.1 California Community College students are faced with the same struggles, with one in 5 students experiencing homelessness or housing instability and two-thirds with food insecurity.2 Food and housing instability are more prevalent among students of color and first-generation students.3 Both Long Beach State University and Long Beach Community College have been champions for their students by establishing programs to help support and address these issues.
Our September program features speakers from both campuses; CSULB Assistant Dean of Students Carol Menard, who coordinates the Student Emergency Intervention and Wellness Program serving the most at-risk students through emergency grants, hotel vouchers or short-term housing, meal assistance, counseling, and on-campus employment. In addition, LBCC District Trustee Dr. Virginia “Ginny” Baxter who with Trustee Sunny Zia helped launch a task force to drive donations to the Long Beach City College Foundation. They helped to support students in need of tuition, but also food, basic necessities, and housing. We hope that you will join us for this presentation on a topic that is not only making national headlines, but is affecting our local community. All are invited to also meet our Frances Magarian Scholarship recipients at this first meeting of the AAUW year!