TOWSON, Md. — Food insecurity is a growing problem on college campuses here in Maryland and around the nation.
At Towson University's resource center, The Hub, students can get free food and other essentials. About 30 students stop by each weekday for help. They’ve helped over a thousand students so far this semester, like sophomore Adjo Omega.
“Refrigerated foods that you can just pop in the microwave and eat it quickly, that has really helped me,” Omega says. “I didn't know that was something that they offered here.”
Last week, the University of Maryland reported that 27% of UMD students are food insecure. Here, at Towson University, it's double that. Approximately 54% of TU students are food insecure.
What does it mean to be food insecure?
“When you are looking for your next meal, you can't focus on your studies the same,” says Faith Borras, Basic Needs Hub coordinator. “If you're hungry and sitting in class, that might affect your academic attendance, that's going to impact your grades. It's an isolating feeling.”
Borras knows firsthand.
A first-generation college student, she came to the hub for a little help. Then, she started volunteering there. Since graduating in 2022, she's been working to eliminate food insecurity on campus.
“It's come really fully circle for me,” she says. “When I first started with this program, we were just a FoodShare pantry that was working out of a tiny closet in the Health and Counseling Center. So, our growth over the last two years has just been tremendous.”
The Hub offers prepackaged goods, as well as fresh items left over from restaurants on campus, and sometimes fresh produce. They also have toiletries, and a clothes closet with items donated from the community.
If you'd like to help, go here.
