Students suffer from food and housing insecurity
The idea of homelessness and food insecurity is a reality for Central Michigan University students, along with county residents.
Recently, CMU opened a food pantry free for all students to use. Courtney Koch is the graduate assistant for the student food pantry and said there has been a large amount of students who use the pantry's services.
Since it was opened, the student food pantry receives around 60 residents per distribution week, Koch said. The pantry is open and distributes every other week on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. A common trend Koch sees with students coming into the pantry is students who can’t stretch out their paychecks for food. She said most of these students have jobs as well.
“A common theme I’ve seen is how grateful the students are that we have this resource (on campus),” Koch said.
She said it is estimated that 15 percent of CMU students suffer from food insecurity. This estimate was gathered by looking at how many students were on financial aid and scholarships. She said there needs to be a campus-wide study to get a more accurate percentage.
When it comes to the city of Mount pleasant, there are more options for students who struggle with food insecurity. There is The Pantry, located at 1114 W High St., and the Isabella Community Soup Kitchen, located at 621 S Adams St. The soup kitchen is open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Mondays through Saturdays.
Sarah Adkins is the executive director at the soup kitchen, and said it is common for them to receive county residents who are living paycheck to paycheck. However, she does not see a lot of CMU students come through and utilize the soup kitchen, and she said she would like to see more students use the kitchen, since it is open to everybody.
It’s not just food insecurity that students may struggle with. In some cases, students may find themselves at the Isabella County Restoration House for emergency shelter or other needs. Ryan Griffus, Executive Director at the restoration house, said CMU students come into the restoration house semi-regularly when the restoration house is open.
“At least monthly we get students coming in for some kind of supportive service,” Griffus said.
