PPLN Parking Lot Question & Answers

QUESTION:

I'm curious about folks' experiences with college financial aid offices, which could do so much to help connect folks to SNAP. Have folks had experience with them -- are they helpful in this regard, or not? (Of course they already have a lot on their plates.)

ANSWER:

Financial aid offices indeed play a key role in connecting potentially eligible students to SNAP and providing required verification documents for exemptions such as 0 EFC, Federal Work Study eligibility and other financial information from FAFSA. The US Department of Education recently issued guidance on the provision of student-level FAFSA data for the purpose of aligning benefits eligibility with DHS agency partners for basic needs support programs, including SNAP. The Hope Center is working with campus partners nationally to promote and advance these data-sharing agreements in support of students basic needs, and hopes to support similar with and among PPLN members and partners.

QUESTION:

Are there outside 501c3's willing to partner with universities across the state so they can obtain partnerships/purchase food from the central Pennsylvania food bank for pantries at the reduced rates? We are still paying full price at local grocers for our pantry outside of donated foods (which are also often expired).

ANSWER:

There should be an access point for pantry prices and discounts on retail food. We found Wellsboro Area Food Bank nearby, but anyone in this situation is best to start with their local area food bank, usually via the county food bank. They should be able and willing to supply free or discounted food for a campus-based cupboard.

Please note, oftentimes this requires pick-up and transport by the pantry operation. Transport is important to consider when planning for a potential food bank .

For example, in Philadelphia county where Hope Center is headquartered, Philabundance works with a network of 350 social service agencies including food pantries, shelters and emergency kitchens, which distribute food directly to the people in their area who need it most. Philabundance also provides food directly to clients through direct food distribution programs, including free produce markets. Find food near you.

QUESTION:

What are the best ways for four year institutions to help transfer students used to community college SNAP benefits bridge their benefits when they join our campus?

ANSWER:

We consulted with our Parenting Student Advisors who have direct experience with this transition. They offered the following advice:

1. The top thing is communication. Communication should be done on multiple platforms such as email, text and student information portals and digital classrooms. Through these platforms, it’s most helpful to offer written instructions, video instructions, and direct web links to all basic need resources, starting with SNAP.

2. Basic needs hub/ central location: One of the best assets of a central benefits hub program like KEYS is that students know where to go for assistance and wont feel lost. This is especially important for transfer students because it is a hard transition to a new place where they are most likely alone and confused.

3. New students’ digital hub: Creating a central digitical location, even an online Classroom like Canvas or Google classroom for new and transfer students could help connect them to resources .There should also be a school hosted website dedicated to students' basic needs. The link to these central digital resources should be sent out before students' first day of class.

4. Peer Navigators: A great way to facilitate these resources being delivered to students is by creating a buddy system where seniors assist transfer students to find support and mentorship. This also creates employment for students that helps meet exemptions for SNAP.

QUESTION:

Also, if any other campuses use Aramark as a food service provider and have successfully set up a swipe donation program or if you are aware of Aramark campuses who did?

ANSWER:

As a first step, it’s most helpful to connect with your own dining services department on campus first. In the case of Aramark, your campus should have a representative responsible for service and programming. If this outreach is unsuccessful, the Hope team has contacts at Aramark headquarters and can follow up to support this connection in the best interest of students’ food security. Regardless of the food service provider, Hope team is available to help PPLN members strategize and problem solve forging a connection.

QUESTION:

Our campus lacks leadership buy-in to acknowledge and support student’s basic needs. The prevailing sentiment among executive leadership is that our college is not a social service agency. There is stigma and fear of being regarded as a school that serves disadvantaged students, or catering to those in need, as opposed to an institution of higher learning. Is there data for PA parenting students that reflects the food insecurity they endure so we might convince leadership of the problem? Other ideas to build leadership buy-in?

ANSWER:

The Hope Center ran special analysis of our #RealCollege Fall 2020 Survey for PPLN PA, which was completed by over 13,000 students state-wide. Of PA students who are parenting, the majority, or 62% experienced food insecurity in the prior 30 days, housing insecurity or homelessness within the last year. The rates of basic needs insecurity amongst non-parenting students in PA was 48%.

We found the largest disparities of basic needs insecurity in PA were among parenting students of color. Specifically, 87% Hispanic or Latinx, 78% Black or African American, and 67% Indigenous PA parenting students indicated lack of food or housing security, compared to 46% of white parenting students.

Taking a two-generation look at the impact of parenting students’ basic needs insecurity, sadly we see that 15% of all PA parenting students indicated an inability to afford balanced meals for their children. Worse, 3% of PA parenting students said they had to skip meals or not eat for a whole day with their children. This two-generation food insecurity is more than double for Asian, Black and Latinx parenting students compared to their white counterparts, where 22% parenting students of color endured food insecurity compared to 10% of white parenting students.

As for building campus leadership buy-in, a few resource speak to this issue:

1. Marketplace story sheds light on this question: https://www.marketplace.org/2022/04/08/should-colleges-help-students-pay-for-basic-living-costs/

2. Enrollment declines across sectors signal crucial investments in student supports to curtail, especially at community colleges: https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/CTEE_Report_Spring_2021.pdf

3. A college president reflects on learning from students about their basic needs through the Pandemic: https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2022/05/10/president-recounts-pandemic-leadership-lessons-opinion

QUESTION: Can you share more on the Scholar House model that includes a national affiliate program?

ANSWER: Family Scholar House, provides both residential and nonresidential supports for single moms and dads and their children with a comprehensive, holistic continuum of care that helps them meet their educational, career and family goals. Family Scholar House has an affiliate program wherein institutions and organizations around the country that want to implement, and receive support for, the Family Scholar House model in their local community. Through the affiliate program, Family Scholar House provides technical assistance, hands-on training, and access to the organization’s canvas/s database to its affiliates in Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, and, most recently, California. Contact Kate Brackett, VP, Strategic Initiatives at kbrackett@familyscholarhouse.org, for more information about becoming an affiliate.

QUESTION:: Campus champions are looking for ways to engage students in efforts to influence school leadership to care about their basic needs. What would you recommend campus leaders do to effectively engage student expertise in efforts to convince college presidents they should prioritize the basic needs of their students.

ANSWER: (From PPLN members)

1. I would suggest starting by bringing partners together to discuss issues in your community and what you want to focus on.

2. I've been amazed at the synergy that can happen when a group of folks comes together to talk about student housing insecurity and develop priorities and strategies

3. The partners that have come together for Scholar House have such great knowledge of their areas and we're able to really troubleshoot issues together.

4. We've seen Student Gov't leaders on campuses play critical goals in lifting up basic needs to college leadership.

5. I recommend getting a faculty member or department chair to help them organize and prepare for a meeting with key administrators.

(From Parenting Student Advisors)

1. Since a lot of parenting students aren't financially stable, offer some sort of compensation to incentivize engagement and support their costs.

2. Put student leaders in charge of outreach - it minimizes stigma to work with peers or people they can relate to.

3. Allow the engagement to count as course credit or other student work, especially if related to a course of study or major.

4. Create a school-wide campaign to call students to action with various outreach methods, meeting opportunities, and times and methods to engage around basic need topics. Communicate to students with phrases that normalize basic need insecurity such as "Are you struggling to afford food on campus? You are not alone!" "Do you want to make a change? Join other student leaders to have our voices heard! "

5. Leverage faculty for referrals and outreach. Professors can include syllabus statements on basic needs resources and engage their students to share suggestions about needed campus supports.

1. Partner with student government organizations to connect with students who are primed to advocate for change on campus.

QUESTION:: Do the PA housing supportive services include resources for individuals grappling with addiction or mental illness?

ANSWER: Please see this resource page from DHS about supportive housing programs across the state for people experiencing addiction and other mental health challenges. It explains “the Pennsylvania Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) unveiled a {plan} entitled A Call for Change: Toward a Recovery-Oriented Mental Health Service System for Adults. The OMHSAS Adult Advisory Committee formed a Housing Work Group to develop a set of principles, strategies and action plans for expanding housing with recovery-oriented services for consumers.”

QUESTION:: Can a child be removed from a parent if the parent student enters a shelter?

ANSWER: No, the parent will not lose custody of their child solely due to their housing situation, unless it is determined that the child is experiencing abuse and/or neglect. More information on the rights and responsibilities of parents, students and child advocates in PA can be found in this Guide to PA’s Education for Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness from the Department of Education.

QUESTION: I am wondering if you have more advice about what makes a strong CCAMPIS proposal and any recommendations of things to make sure to include? We are working with two different schools to support them with their application process right now and see this as a great opportunity to open the door to much broader 2Gen and Family friendly campus work at these schools.

ANSWER:

1. Provide evidence of strong partnerships

2. Identify additional sustainable funding

3. Share data on parenting students - collaborate with institutional research &/or financial aid for data

QUESTION: I was understanding that CCAMPIS funds could only be used for funding the childcare. But it sounded like from the presentations that it might be more expanded than this.

ANSWER:

Answer from network advisor: CCAMPIS also pays for space upfront. We pay when the provider would typically charge which is at the beginning of the month. We also have an endowment that supports the nonprofit center on campus

QUESTION: My campus has an endowment that covers the cost of child care for students in our Single Parent Scholars program. However, there are almost no openings in child care centers in the community. Any suggestions? We also pay for before and after-care at the YMCA for school-age kids. So... no problem with that age group. It's the 2-5 year-old group that's become a huge issue.

ANSWER: This is always a tough one but there are pathways to supporting centers to open or be licensed, and PA DHS ELRC can help connect parents and support staff to childcare centers in the area they might not know about: https://www.dhs.pa.gov/Services/Children/Pages/5-Step-Child-Care.aspx

QUESTION: Are these (financial aid) issues a place for federal advocacy? Does anyone know if there are groups working on addressing these issues already?

ANSWER: Indeed! A number of organizations across the country are working to address these issues: see the list and links to their related policy agendas for state and federal policy change to student financial aid systems. We will be aligning our advocacy priorities for the PPLN partnership with parenting students and the Advisory committee - and PPLN member campuses will be invited to join the call for systemic change at the state level.

uAspire Federal Policy Agenda

Higher Learning Advocates

The Education Trust

Government Accountability Office report on financial aid improvements needed for parenting students

QUESTION: What about Veterans education benefits for parenting students?

ANSWER: Advisory Committee members noted “Many in the national guard or reserves have been deployed but have not separated from service after deployment ends. They would be a veteran but may not realize it.” They also shared this resource for PA military families: https://www.pa.ng.mil/education/Military-Family-Education-Program/

QUESTION: Sorry if I missed this but are we going to discuss Title IX protections?

ANSWER: While Title IX policy has not been a core topic area for PA PPLN, opportunities to support and expand its protections for pregnant and parenting students could be a priority area for the network to recommend moving forward. Especially given the U.S. Dept of Education’s proposed rulemaking process, many national advocacy orgs such as National Women’s Law Center, National Crittenton, and Healthy Teen Network are leading coordination and coalition building. The National Education Association offers a helpful overview.

Also, Advisory Committee leader Dr. Kalani Palmer shared the following example of how Title IX is upheld in programming and practical policies at IUP: https://www.iup.edu/socialequity/policies/supporting-the-academic-success-of-pregnant-and-newborn-parenting-students.html