Food insecure college students not using SNAP

Two-thirds of the 3.3 million college students eligible for federal food aid in 2020 did not access it, Government Accountability Office found in a report released on Wednesday.

looking by Democratic lawmakers in 2021, the report comes as Congress is in the midst of updating the Farm Bill, a broad piece of legislation that sets policy for agriculture and food programs, and offers new insights about food insecurity among college students and access in the federal food assistance program known as SNAP. Over the years, advocates have pushed Congress to make SNAP easier for college students to access. The need is certainly there: About 23 percent of college students reported experiencing food insecurity according to the report, which analyzed federal data released last year.

For advocates, the GAO's findings highlight why the changes are needed, as well as the need for colleges to reach out to students who are potentially eligible for SNAP and ensure they are aware of their benefits.

That reinforces SNAP student rule-breaking and the need for deep reform of the rules and some kind of rewriting of other rules, said Mark Huelsman, policy director at the Hope Center for College, Community and Justice at Temple University. If two-thirds of potentially eligible students are not receiving benefits, the eligibility criteria and scope and indeed every part of the system must be fundamentally rethought.

Currently, college students enrolled at least half-time must meet other eligibility criteria, including being a single parent or a disability, to receive SNAP. They must also meet the program's income and citizenship requirements. Recipients in a one-person household cannot have a net income of more than $1,580 a month and qualify, for example.

Virginia Representative Bobby Scott, the top Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee, which requested the GAO study, said Inside the High Ed in a statement the report asserts that many college students are unable to escape hunger while pursuing their educational goals, noting that research has shown that food insecurity can negatively impact students' academic outcomes.

Congress must ensure that students who are eligible for SNAP benefits have access to those benefits and that colleges are proactively informing students about the benefits available to them, Scott said. As the cost of attending college continues to rise, Congress can and must do more to support food insecure students and provide them with the resources they need to graduate.

This report is the first of two GAO studies on food insecurity that are in the works. The second will describe the barriers and challenges students face in accessing SNAP, a Democratic aide said.

Huelsman said previous studies and surveys on food insecurity among college students have shown the problem is broad and substantial. The new study, he said, provides greater detail about students who are eligible for SNAP and which populations are affected by food insecurity.

Nearly four million students experienced food insecurity, and half of them had very low food security, according to the report. This means that they have had numerous occasions to eat less than they should or have skipped meals because they could not afford enough food. About 80 percent of food insecure students are considered nontraditional, meaning they are financially independent from their parents, did not enroll in college right out of high school, or are not caring for a dependent.

About half of those who reported experiencing food insecurity were from low-income households. Approximately 31 percent of Pell Grant recipients in 2022 said they were food insecure. For Huelsman, the Pell Grant statistic shows the inadequacy of federal financial aid.

Need-based financial aid is falling short of addressing the basic needs of students, he added.

SNAP provides low-income individuals with money to pay for food, but college students must meet a complex set of criteria in order to qualify for this benefit. The GAO estimated that 40 percent of food-insecure students may be eligible for SNAP, but they are not taking advantage of it. About 59 percent of those who were food insecure and eligible reported not receiving SNAP benefits.

The GAO conducted a similar analysis of 2016 to 2018 data and found that 57 percent fewer potentially eligible students were accessing SNAP. In this latest report, that number rose to 67 percent. That 10 percent jump stood out to Carrie Welton, senior director of policy and advocacy at the Institute for College Access and Success.

I'm just not surprised and surprised that in just a few years, that number is now almost 70 percent who were potentially eligible but not getting SNAP, Welton said. And it really highlights to me and to TICAS in particular the need to modernize the Farm Bill to reflect that people want education and employers increasingly demand it.

Welton and others have argued that SNAP eligibility requirements make it difficult for students to pursue a post-secondary education and access food assistance. College students enrolled more than half-time are generally exempt from SNAP unless they qualify for an exemption such as working 20 hours or more per week.

The stigma associated with applying for federal food stamps and the complexity of the programs' eligibility requirements can deter students from seeking SNAP, Welton said.

Advocacy and higher education groups have argued that colleges should use federal financial aid data to identify students who may qualify for SNAP and then proactively reach out to those individuals. The news was announced by the Department of Education instruction in 2022 outlining how colleges can use that data to inform students about benefits and federal aid for which they may qualify.

When more than half of food-insecure students potentially eligible for public assistance don't report receiving SNAP, it's likely a matter of awareness more than student reluctance to apply, said Tanya Ang, executive director of the Student Coalition. Today, which advocates for policy changes to better serve students. Although ED has issued guidance to colleges that address how FAFSA data can be used to inform students of their potential eligibility for means-tested benefits, including direct contact, most institutions face resource constraints or report concerns about follow-up questions that they are unable to answer. the biggest obstacles in the implementation of departmental instructions.

Huelsman said raising awareness of SNAP benefits doesn't require Congress to pass a farm bill or take any other action. Higher education could do a much better job of connecting students with the benefits they're eligible for, he said.

There are many existing opportunities to do this without changing the rules to ensure that more students receive aid that would potentially keep them enrolled.