The Voice Of Russia/Zuhal Sarhad

Although a “food insecurity” problem – a lack of nutritional food – is not typically associated with US students, it has already become an alarming signal for college administrators who see more and more hungry students, especially those from low-income families. An unreasonable amount of time needed to receive food stamps is seen as one of the reasons for the problem.

“Almost as bad as the hunger itself is the stress that you’re going to be hungry,” said Vaughn, 22, a fifth-year student at GMU, cited by the Washington Post. “I spend more time thinking ‘How am I going to make some money so I can go eat?’ and I focus on that when I should be doing homework or studying for a test.” 

Last year, after applying for the food stamp program, students would get notice of their status in either a month or two, but now there is no common wait-time period. Furthermore, it has become much longer than usual.

The recent change in the system used to apply for food stamps is seen as one of the reasons for the lag time. The food stamps request has transitioned from being an independent procedure to being combined with Medicaid, according to Sarah Wright, a member of the advisory board for Feed the Pack.

“We had several students that were not approved in a timely manner from when their application was submitted,” she said. “Obviously, that was a tough time for those students to manage, but what was nice is that they were back-paid from the time that their applications should have been approved.”

Meanwhile, tuition and living expenses are rising tremendously and students feel like they are being entrapped by the rising food insecurity problem.

Monica Grey, director of programs at the College Success Foundation-District of Columbia, which helps low-income high school students said: “Between paying rent, paying utilities and then trying to buy food, that’s where we see the most insecurity because that’s the most flexible.”

Although no comprehensive nationwide research of student hunger has yet been carried out, some experts stress that it is rising and may exceed the national average for all age groups.

A survey conducted in Oregon indicated that 59 percent of students at Western Oregon University had been recently suffering from food insecurity. The figure from a 2009 survey carried out by University of Hawaii was about 21 percent.

“Campuses across the country are starting to realize that there is that sector of people who don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” said Nate Smith-Tyge, director of the MSU Student Food Bank. “It’s not only a moral issue but also a curricular and academic issue.”

Campus dietitian Jane Jakubczak at College Park noted that in the past two years the number of those who can’t afford proper nutrition has increased dramatically.

“In the past, not everyone went to college,” Jane Jakubczak said. “Now our society is realizing that a college degree is really essential in terms of getting anywhere in your career. . . . A few have mentioned that they’re the first generation going to college, and that, mixed with the economy, I think it may just be that perfect storm of what’s going on.”