According to a recent collegiate study, one in five students went hungry in the last month, and one in 10 students has been homeless.

Students who are food insecure are missing meals once a day, sometimes missing full days of meals. These are students who are getting calories, but what they are eating is very unhealthy. They can only afford ramen noodles or mac and cheese, so the food is not necessarily nourishing them the way they need.

The problem of food insecurity is increasingly on the radar of many college administrators. Students are sometimes finding it difficult to focus or even stay in class, so if we can remove one of those barriers by providing access to food, then that’s what we need to do here at GHC. Many students at GHC are non-traditional, supporting families and working full-time while attending college. Food insecurity cuts across all demographics.

That’s where GHC’s new food pantry comes in.

The Charger Food Pantry will officially open on March 14 on the Floyd campus in the Student Support Services suite. It will be stocked with staple items like peanut butter, tuna, and spaghetti sauce to help students who have fallen on hard times. Students can “shop” for 12 items at least once a week- no questions asked. A limited number of emergency pre-packaged food items will be available to students on other GHC campuses through the Student Support offices.

Our goal is to have the pantry completely stocked with non-perishable food items by March 14th as the opening day. We need your help to get it stocked!

Be on the lookout for bright green collection bins located around campus to donate food items. If you have any questions, feel free to contact sss@highlands.edu.

We are GHC!