Purpose: A student-specific definition of basic needs for higher education is warranted to inform programs and policies for underserved students. The purpose of this study was to: 1) explore how students define basic needs, 2) understand experiences of housing insecurity, and 3) understand experiences of food insecurity within the context of housing insecurity. Design: Qualitative research elicited student perceptions of basic needs and experiences of housing and food insecurity. Setting: Focus group discussions were conducted at 5 University of California campuses between February and March 2019. Participants: Undergraduate (n = 37) and graduate (n = 21) students were recruited from campus basic needs centers. Methods: Each student completed a brief survey. Researchers conducted 11 focus groups using a semi-structured interview guide. Transcripts were coded to identify themes. Results: Students were female (76%), age 23.6 (SD = 5.8) years; 46% were Pell grant recipients; and 52% were first-generation college students. Most had experienced food insecurity (98%) and 26% had experienced homelessness. Eight themes were identified: 1) students define basic needs as more than minimal food and shelter and as the responsibility of students and the university, 2) students encounter multifaceted housing insecurity issues, 3) affording rent is a priority that most often leads to experiencing food insecurity, 4) transportation barriers interfere with meeting students’ basic needs to succeed as students, 5) students with nontraditional characteristics, graduate students, and out-of-state students face unique challenges in meeting basic needs, 6) limited financial aid and lack of financial aid guidance are barriers to meeting basic needs, 7) fees contribute additional challenges to students meeting basic needs, and 8) additional university basic needs services are essential. Conclusion: A student-informed definition of basic needs included food, housing, mental health, sleep, hygiene, and transportation. This understanding of basic needs can inform future research, programs, and policy to address housing insecurity in higher education.

Rural populations in the United States have lower physical activity levels and are at a higher risk of being overweight and suffering from obesity than their urban counterparts. This paper aimed to understand the environmental factors that influence physical activity among rural adults in Montana. Eight built environment audits, 15 resident focus groups, and 24 key informant interviews were conducted between August and December 2014. Themes were triangulated and summarized into five categories of environmental factors: built, social, organizational, policy, and natural environments. Although the existence of active living features was documented by environmental audits, residents and key informants agreed that additional indoor recreation facilities and more well-maintained and conveniently located options were needed. Residents and key informants also agreed on the importance of age-specific, well-promoted, and structured physical activity programs, offered in socially supportive environments, as facilitators to physical activity. Key informants, however, noted that funding constraints and limited political will were barriers to developing these opportunities. Since building new recreational facilities and structures to support active transportation pose resource challenges, especially for rural communities, our results suggest that enhancing existing features, making small improvements, and involving stakeholders in the city planning process would be more fruitful to build momentum towards larger changes.

Children eat more fruits and vegetables when more are available at home, but less is known about how the neighborhood food environment relates to children’s diet and weight outcomes. The goal of this study was to determine whether parental perception of the food environment (neighborhood and home) is associated with children’s fruit and vegetable (F&V) intake and weight outcomes, and to assess differences by household food security status and household income. Cross-sectional data from the 2013–2015 U.S. Healthy Communities Study included 5138 children, aged 4 to 15 years old, from 130 U.S. communities. Neighborhood and home food environments were assessed with parent-reported, perceived F&V availability scores. Associations were tested with multi-level linear regression models. Parents’ perception of produce availability was associated with household F&V availability ratings (β = 0.09 points, p < 0.001). Household F&V availability was associated with child F&V intake (β = 0.32 cups/day or 25.6 g/day, p < 0.001). A higher child F&V intake was associated with a lower child BMI z-score (β = −0.05, p = 0.002). Weaker relationships were seen for children living in food insecure or low-income households. Optimizing neighborhood and home access to F&V may help children improve diet quality, but may not be as effective for children living in food insecure or low-income households.

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