Understanding the Role of CalFresh Participation and Food Insecurity on Academic Outcomes among College Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Food insecurity (FI) is associated with many adverse outcomes in college students. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, known as CalFresh in California) has been observed to alleviate FI; however, on college campuses, the benefits of food assistance programs are not well understood. This study investigated whether college students benefit from CalFresh participation. It was hypothesized that students would experience increased FI over time and that CalFresh participation would moderate the effect of FI on grade point average (GPA). A comprehensive FI and CalFresh questionnaires were distributed during the 2020–2021 academic year to 849 students. The chi-square test of independence assessed differences between FI and student factors. A Friedman test assessed differences in FI during the three quarters. Moderation analysis assessed whether CalFresh participation moderated FI’s effect on GPA. Differences were observed among food security scores in Winter 2021 (median = 1.69) and Fall 2020 (median = 2.14; p = 0.013) and Spring 2020 (median = 2.17; p = 0.009). In the moderation model, the interaction of FI score and CalFresh participation was positively correlated with GPA (B = 0.11; p = 0.002). These results indicate that SNAP/CalFresh participation was particularly beneficial for mitigating the negative effects of FI on GPA. Given these benefits, encouraging SNAP/CalFresh enrollment should be a priority for university administrators.

COVID‐19‐related stressors exacerbate food insecurity and depressive symptoms among graduate students receiving campus basic needs services: Cross‐sectional findings from seven California public universities

“…At the federal level, the Enhance Access to SNAP (EATS) Act (2023) seeks to address this issue by expanding SNAP student eligibility, which would benefit graduate students who do not meet work requirements due to their funding source. Nevertheless, receiving SNAP assistance has shown to lessen the impact of food insecurity on undergraduate and graduate students' grade point average during the pandemic, highlighting the importance of expanding SNAP access (Loofbourrow et al., 2023).…”

Food Insecurity in Higher Education: A Contemporary Review of Impacts and Explorations of Solutions

“…Bergdahl et al found that for students experiencing food insecurity, government supports in the form of stimulus payments to students from low-income backgrounds were most helpful for alleviating food insecurity [154]. Federal stimulus payments were also observed to be of particular benefit to students when combined with SNAP benefits at a large California university [155]. Unfortunately, resource availability was not stable for all college students nationwide; such differences in resource availability for vulnerable students may exacerbate inequities and compound negative experiences during times of acute stress or emergency [156].…”

Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Food Access in Two Predominantly White Cities: The Case of Lansing, East Lansing, and Surrounding Townships in Michigan

“…Numerous college food insecurity studies have been conducted in the U.S. [132][133][134][135][136][137]. More specifically, several state and regional assessments have been conducted in Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic area [138,139] Illinois [140], Oregon [141], California and the western U.S. [142][143][144][145][146], and Georgia and the southeastern U.S. [147][148][149]. Research conducted at Michigan State University shows that in 2020, 39% of the students reported low or very low food security [46].…”