Committee on Food Insecurity

Faculty Representatives (Name, Department)

Student Representative

Liaisons

Amawati Gonesh, Advocacy Resource Center

Dr. Brian Mitra, Student Affairs

Ronni Weprin, Office of Strategic Initiatives and Advancement

Meetings:

The committee meets twice a semester on Wednesdays at 1:00 pm

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Section 23. The Committee on Food Insecurity

The Committee on Food Insecurity shall consist of 10 members: 8 faculty members, 1 HEA/HEO member and 1 student: one officer of the Queensborough Student Association.

The Committee on Food Insecurity shall:

1. With the Food Pantry becoming a part of Queensborough Community College and receiving grant funding and donations from the QCC fund, the pantry is no longer independent of the college. Members of the Food Insecurity Committee will work with administration in an advisory capacity on policy making issues and in the running of the food pantry. This change to the bylaws seeks to reflect this reality, and establish the advisory nature of the academic senate committee. Reducing the size of the Committee on Food Insecurity to nine (9) members (seven (7) faculty members, one (1) HEA/HEO and one (1) student) will better reflect the scope of the Committee's work and will alleviate scheduling challenges. The addition of a HEA/HEO representative to the Committee acknowledges HEA/HEO participation in the Food Pantry and incorporates their additional input. The committee remains willing to continue volunteering to keep the food pantry open in partnership with the administration.

General Committee Guide

• Committee Guide Addendum

• To the extent that the current model of a faculty/administrative partnership may continue, it is recommended that any service to the pantry---whether in the form of donated time (Pantry hours) or donations in kind (Pantry supplies) be noted either as college service or in Committee reports to the Academic Senate, out of respect to faculty and staff members who make these donations, and in the same spirit that financial contributions to the Queensborough Community Fund receive acknowledgment for tax purposes
• Update committee members' names on webiste.
• Facilitate Student participation – A Committee Representation Preference Form will be sent to already-elected student senators during the first week of the semester, and to the remaining roster of senators culled from Club officers by the end of September. Students will be given a link to your committee's webpage, so make sure the webpage has chair/secretary contact information on it, including meeting times where possible
• The Committee should continue to explore ways to further promote the Queensborough Food Pantry and promulgate resources for food and housing-insecure students.  
• The Committee should continue to work with Student organizations and clubs to promote Food drives that can re-stock/unpack for the pantry, and should continue to partner with administration in exploring grant and fund-raising opportunities that might yield scaled-up pantry stocking and/or food purchase support for students off-campus. 
• Continue to support and promote campus sponsored food drives 
• Continue to have 1 major food distribution event a semester (thanksgiving in the fall and one in the spring)
• Continue to work closely with the Advocacy Resource Center (ARC) to provide assistance for students who need more help than the food pantry alone can provide.
• Develop a monthly recipe contest for students to help increase student engagement and pantry awareness.