Committee on Food Insecurity

QUEENSBOROUGH COMMUNITY COLLEGE 

The City University of New York

ACADEMIC SENATE COMMITTEE ON FOOD INSECURITY

TO: Dr. Steven Dahlke, Chair, Academic Senate Steering Committee 

Dr. Jannette Urciuoli, Vice-Chair, Academic Steering Committee

Dr. Zivah Perel-Katz, Secretary, Academic Steering Committee

Dr. Leslie Francis, Parliamentarian, Academic Senate Steering Committee

FROM: Dr. Peter Bales, Chair - Committee on Food Insecurity.

SUBJECT: Annual Report for the Committee on Food Insecurity for 2018-2019

Membership for the 2018-2019 academic year consisted of the following:

Faculty Representatives (Name, Department, and end of current term)

1. DiGiorgio, Elizabeth, Art and Design (2019)
2. Ikwueze, Chukwudi, Social Sciences (2019)
3. Khomyak, Nataliya, Math and Computer Sciences (2019)
4. Bales, Peter, Social Sciences/History (2020)
5. Jacobowitz, Susan, English (2020)
6. Tai, Emily, History (2020)
7. Brodbar, Dorith, Counseling (2021)
8. Shin, Jun, Chemistry (2021)
9. Traver, Amy, Social Sciences (2021)

Student Representatives

1. Ms. Mabely Salvador (President)
2. Mr. Michael Fischbach (Vice-President for Programming)

Liaisons

   1. Vice-President Sherri Newcomb, President's Liaison

   2. Anissa Moody, Social Sciences, Steering Committee Designee

All of the faculty members actively participated in the work of the committee and/or as actual volunteers in the food pantry. VP Sherri Newcomb served as the President’s liaison and special thanks go to VP Brian Kerr and VP Rosemary Zins for their generous support. Dave Morretti offered his valuable time and assistance in all manner of online matters, particularly the food pantry web page on the QCC website. Gratitude also goes to Senate Steering Committee Vice Chair Jannette Urciuoli for her support of the Food Insecurity Committee, wise counsel, and her communications to the Administration on our behalf.

Special recognition goes to Susan Jacobowitz, Amy Traver, Liz DiGiorgio (Committee Secretary), and Dorith Brodbar for all their tireless efforts to keep the food pantry viable and in operation.

With the change in the Administration, and an increased emphasis on food insecurity on the part of both the CUNY Administration and Governor Cuomo’s Office, at the start of the academic year the food pantry moved from a small closet on the fourth floor of the Library building to a much larger space on the top floor of the Student Union. Tens of thousands of dollars (administered by the QCC Fund) became available and, in general, thanks to committee volunteers, the pantry opened for student use during the following hours: 

Mondays: 9:30 – 10:30 a.m.

Tuesdays: 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. 

Wednesdays: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. 

Thursdays: 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. 

Fridays: 10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

Dozens of QCC students per week availed themselves of the pantry’s resources, with an exact count recorded by the faculty volunteers in a small notebook kept inside the pantry. There can be no doubt that food insecurity remains a serious issue among a significant percentage of Queensborough Community College students. (See Appendix #1.) Numerous challenges, particularly in regard to ordering, unpacking, restocking, and staffing recurred and remained unresolved. Volunteers from all constituencies of the College pitched in to help the pantry maintain its schedule during the school year. Many students received much needed help.

Rodent infestation bedeviled the pantry in both locations necessitating that all food in paper or cardboard packaging be placed inside plastic bins. It is hoped this problem will be completely eradicated as the bins make the display and distribution of the food more difficult.

Last Spring semester, the committee was gratified to learn that the QCC Food Pantry received favorable recognition in the report of the Middle States evaluation team.

Also during the Spring semester, the committee received the approval of the Senate Steering Committee, the Bylaws Committee, and subsequently the entire Academic Senate for a change in the bylaws in regard to the committee’s membership and charge. Due to difficulty in getting a quorum at meetings, the membership was reduced from nine faculty to seven and from two students to one. One HEO/HEA representative was added. In addition, committee members desired clarification that the role of the committee is advisory. (See Appendix #2.) 

With Dr. Elizabeth DiGiorio, Dr. Chukwudi Ikwueze, and Dr. Nataliya Khomyak completing their terms, Dr. Peter Bales and Dr. Susan Jacobowitz (whose terms were next up in 2020) agreeing to step down, Dr. Emily Tai returning from academic leave and reassuming her role as chairperson, and the assignation of three new members by the Committee on Committees, the Food Insecurity Committee membership for 2019-2020 has been brought into compliance with its updated bylaws charge.

One overarching frustration overshadowed the deliberations of the Food Insecurity Committee. Funds existed, and the need persisted, for a large increase in food resources to be made available to our needy students. But the Faculty (including the Senate’s Food Insecurity Committee), the Administration, the Staff, and the Students – every constituency of the College – lacked the wherewithal to get the job done.

Recommendations for the Future: 

1. The QCC Food Pantry should be run by the Single Stop office as is consistent with most other CUNY campuses maintaining such services. As such the Single Stop office would be responsible for maintaining pantry access, ordering, unpacking and stocking, etc. In line with its Bylaws charge, the Food Insecurity Committee should serve in an advisory capacity.
2. Mindful of current budgetary constraints, the Single Stop staff should be able to avail itself of voluntary contributions from all constituencies of the College. Volunteers would offer their time as a purely personal choice in a manner that would in no way interfere with their official duties at the College.
3. Student groups, on a voluntary basis and appropriately supervised by their faculty advisors, should be more fully incorporated into operation of the food pantry.
4. Both faculty and students should receive the approval of the President to cite volunteer efforts on behalf of the food pantry as “College service” on appropriate documents. 
5. The precise location of the pantry should take into account easy accessibility for Single Stop staff as they sometimes need to assist students with immediate (even emergency) need. Anecdotal reports from pantry volunteers indicate that students value pantry accessibility above all else and are not overly concerned about stigma or embarrassment.
6. As an aid in the future ordering of food, the QCC Food Pantry should seek the counsel of “in house” QCC faculty members with expertise in the field of nutrition.
7. Resources should be made available to offer accessibility during breaks and summers.
8. Signage, written materials, and in person counseling by pantry workers should receive increased emphasis so students can be better aware that the food pantry is for relatively short term use and Single Stop staff are available to help them navigate the process for applying for longer term federal SNAP benefits. 
9. Many students remain unaware that Queensborough Community College maintains a food pantry. New communication strategies need be developed and implemented.
10. The hours the food pantry is open to students during the Fall and Spring semesters should be significantly increased.      

The Food Insecurity Committee unanimously agreed the QCC Food Pantry can become an effective and vital part of Queensborough Community College if we all work together.

Respectfully submitted,

Dr. Peter Bales

Chair, Academic Senate Food Insecurity Committee, 2018-2019

APPENDIX #1: DOCUMENTED NEED AT CUNY

The findings in the City University of New York #RealCollege Survey report that 48% of the 22,000 CUNY students who responded to a 2018 survey said they were food insecure in the prior 30 days. https://hope4college.com/city-university-of-new- york-realcollege-survey/

APPENDIX #2: ACADEMIC SENATE BYLAWS CHANGE

From:

Section 23. The Committee on Food Insecurity

The Committee on Food Insecurity shall consist of 11 members: 9 faculty members and 2 students: one officer of the Queensborough Student Association; and one other student.

The Committee on Food Insecurity shall:

1.     a. Maintain a Food Pantry during the academic year, for a minimum of four hours weekly; b. Establish any guidelines or parameters for the regulation of the Food Pantry as may be needed and appropriate; c. Promote partnerships with Queensborough Student Clubs, together with organizers of campus-wide events, to conduct Food Drives to supply the Food Pantry and raise awareness regarding food insecurity across campus; d. Promote partnerships with faculty and administration to explore service-learning and institutional advancement opportunities that support the Food Pantry as a means to contribute to the enhancement of student instruction, and address conditions of Food Insecurity within the Queensborough community.

To:

Section 23. The Committee on Food Insecurity

The Committee on Food Insecurity shall consist of nine (9) members: seven (7) faculty members, one (1) HEA/HEO and one (1) student appointed by the Queensborough Student Association. 

The Committee on Food Insecurity shall:

1.        a. Advise the Administration in their maintaining of a Food Pantry during the calendar year; b. Advise on any guidelines or parameters for the regulation of the Food Pantry as may be needed and appropriate; c. Promote partnerships with Queensborough Student Clubs, together with organizers of campus-wide events, to raise awareness regarding food insecurity across campus; d. Promote partnerships to explore service-learning and institutional advancement opportunities that address conditions of Food Insecurity within the Queensborough student body.

Rationale: With the Food Pantry becoming a part of Queensborough Community College and receiving funding, faculty no longer have policy-making authority or the responsibility for running an independent food pantry. This change to the bylaws seeks to reflect this reality, and establish the advisory nature of the academic senate committee.