Harford Community College Awarded Third Hunger-Free Campus Grant Through Maryland Higher Education Commission Program

Harford Community College was awarded a grant for $17,020 as part of a statewide initiative to address food insecurity among students on Maryland college campuses. This grant, offered by the Maryland Higher Education Commission, was open to state public institutions of higher education and regional higher education centers to address student hunger, leverage more sustainable solutions to address basic food needs on campus, raise awareness of services offered on campus to address those needs, and to build strategic partnerships at the local, state and national levels.

Through this grant program, Harford was designated a Hunger-Free Campus by the state in 2022. Under the tenets of the grant, the College has committed to fulfilling certain requirements: 1) have an established hunger task force, 2) have a designated staff member responsible for assisting students in enrolling in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and for informing students in Federal Work Study about their eligibility for SNAP, 3) participate in National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, 4) have a food pantry on campus, and 5) conduct an annual student survey on hunger.

Food insecurity on college campuses has grown in recent years. At Harford, 41% of students surveyed during the 2023-24 school year reported that they often or sometimes had the experience that the food they bought did not last and they did not have money to get more. Additionally, 20% of students surveyed have cut the size of their meals or skipped meals because they did not have enough money for food; of those students, 21% said this happens at least monthly.

The grant will be used to purchase grocery store gift cards and on-campus meal vouchers to support students who utilize Harford’s food pantry with the purchase of additional food items or lunches.

For more information, email Jessie Sell, Harford’s Student Wellness Programs Specialist, at jesell@harford.edu or visit https://mhec.maryland.gov/Pages/hunger-free-campus-grant-program.aspx.