The following column was written by Jill Hawkins-Wright, director of the UIS Volunteer and Civic Engagement Center. It was published on Nov. 21, 2023.
"On the campus of the University of Illinois Springfield lies a repurposed conference room full of refrigerators, shopping baskets, canned goods and bookcases stocked with bread.
This room is the UISCares Food Pantry. Since 2016, UISCares has served as a resource to students facing life circumstances that result in “food insecurity” - or lack of reliable access to sufficient, nutritious food. The creation of this resource spawned from findings from the National Student Campaign Against Hunger & Homelessness that reported 44% of college students cut back meal sizes or skip meals because of financial burden."