Chatham Awarded $20,000 State Grant to Address Student Food Insecurity

Written By Mick Stinelli

Last month Chatham University was awarded a $20,000 state grant to reduce student food insecurity. 

The grant comes from the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s PA Hunger-Free Campus Initiative, which started in 2022.  

Among Chatham’s goals for the funding, the University plans to: 

  • Purchase shelf-stable items to regularly stock the Essential Needs Pantries (ENPs) 

  • Buy perishable food products for the Eastside and Eden Hall ENPs per student requests 

  • Create a campus-wide food buying club to help provide low-cost, healthful foods, especially for low-income students 

  • Communicate to students at all campuses the availability of these resources 

With last year’s grant, Chatham was able to open the Essential Needs Pantries at the Eastside location and the Eden Hall Campus. (An ENP was already established at the Shadyside Campus.) The University also enhanced its “break boxes” – containers of food provided to students who don’t leave campus during the November and December breaks. 

Mick Stinelli
Next

Fall 2024 Undergrad Enrollment Continues a Decade of Undergrad Growth