The Board of Regents’ effort to address food insecurity among college students has received a historic $1 million investment from the Louisiana Legislature. Higher Education Commissioner Kim Hunter Reed says food is a critical part of a student’s ability to learn.
“This is a student success and a student completion issue. That means we have to be engaged, and we’re so happy the legislature is supporting the work,” Reed said.
A recent study found that 23% of college students nationwide, which is almost 4 million, experience food insecurity. Reed says half of the $1 million allocation from the state legislature will help colleges address barriers to food access.
“So if a campus doesn’t have refrigeration or freezers or lockers so students can go after hours and access food, we want to make sure the first $500,000 is used for that,” Reed noted.
Louisiana was one of the first states to establish a Hunger-Free Campus program. The $1 million investment is a significant expansion. Reed says House Appropriations Chairman Jack McFarland committed to increasing the funding after speaking with a college student who needs food assistance.
“And so we had a conversation about the impact that that student had on him, and he said, ‘We need to do more. We’ve got to help more students. I was not aware of this,"” Reed recalled.