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Did you know that, according to a study by the KU School of Public Affairs and Administration, one in three KU students have limited or uncertain access to adequate food? Many factors contribute to this developing problem, such as increased costs for transportation, the price of rent and school supplies, work schedules that interfere with on-campus dining hours or even running out of meal plan allotments before the end of the month.
KU’s food pantries serve students, faculty and staff who are experiencing food insecurity. This #GivingTuesday, YOU can help keep their shelves stocked to meet essential needs for our university community.
The Campus Cupboard, located in the Kansas Union, is a food pantry for KU students, faculty, staff and affiliates. It was created to address and reduce food insecurity in our campus community. With your support, we can provide food to any KU community member — student, faculty or staff — who needs it. Your gifts help pay for fresh and frozen food items, while the pantry’s shelf-stable supplies are stocked by Just Food, a local food bank that also provides some fresh produce during the local growing season, thanks to generous gardeners. In addition to those highest-need items, this project will help us stock our shelves with culturally appropriate food items and items that address different dietary needs.
Like food pantries across the country, the number of people using the Campus Cupboard has increased over the past few years, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been a 40% increase in the number of monthly visits to the pantry, from 390 at this time last year to approximately 550. These numbers include repeat visitors, as students may visit up to twice a week. There is a particularly high demand for fresh and frozen food items, which are restocked weekly and tend to run out quickly.
This project will also support take-home meal bags during university breaks. The meal bags are produced in partnership with the campus organization Food Flawk and have also seen an increase in need.
Thrive’s mission is to provide access to nutritious food and resources that promote health and allow students to thrive. What started as a food pantry now does so much more. In addition to healthy food on the shelves, THRIVE offers both hygiene and housewares sections. The team works with the KU Med Center campus landscaping department to provide fresh vegetables that are grown on campus from April to October. THRIVE also partners with the Department of Dietetics to provide recipes that use vegetables and pantry staples.
All of this helps our students be unconcerned about where they will get their next meal — a major reduction in stress. As a professional campus, KUMC is a little different from the typical college experience, as many of our students do not have time for a part-time job and may have a family. Furthermore, 19% of our unique student users last year were feeding three or more people in their household.
The most requested items are proteins (peanut butter, canned chicken and tuna, black beans), mac and cheese, tomato sauce, snacks (granola bars, crackers) and soup. Can openers are also difficult to keep in stock — these are extremely helpful!
Between November and December at the KU Medical Center, there is little time for anything but final projects and exams. With the help of Harvesters Community Food Network, we have offered Thanksgiving meals for those who may not have any place to go for the holiday. The pantry stays open after classes end and only closes during the week between Christmas and New Year's Day, when the university is closed.