UMass Amherst Parents Advisory Council - Food Security Drive

UMass Amherst is on a mission to ensure that all students are food secure. Food security means that students have access, at all times, to enough food for an active, healthy life. 

You can help provide food security to all UMass students with a gift today!

Food insecurity at colleges across the United States is a serious and widespread problem. In the 2018 study of college students in the US “Still Hungry and Homeless in College,” the Hope Center found that: 

• 36% of university students were food insecure in the 30 days preceding the survey. This translates to approximately 10,400 students at UMass. 
• 36% of university students were housing insecure in the last year. 
• 9% of university students were homeless in the last year. This translates to approximately 2,600 students at UMass. 

We know these numbers have only risen as COVID-19 has exacerbated already existing food, financial, and housing insecurity for students and their families. We also know that hunger and homelessness are injustices linked to historical inequities of race, class, and gender; though higher-level systemic change is needed to correct these realities, one small difference we can make is in ensuring adequate access to food resources for every student.

The food security initiatives fund was born out of the ongoing work of the Campus Food Security Working Group, convened by the Dean of Students Office to work on putting into place a number of long-term, sustainable food security measures on campus. When you support this fund, you will be helping launch projects that make a lasting and significant impact on UMass students.

Let us know if there is a student in need! If you are a UMass Amherst student seeking more information about food security or other resources, please visit the Dean of Students Office website for resources and contact information.