Graduation Term

2020

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Department of Family and Consumer Sciences

Committee Chair

Julie Schumacher

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this case study was to understand the development of a food pantry for students of higher education at a Midwestern university.

Methods: The researchers recruited 11 individuals on the food pantry’s board using a snowball sampling method to participate in a 30-minute interview about the food pantry’s development from conception to implementation. The interviews were transcribed and then qualitatively analyzed by two researchers. The researchers coded interviews separately to identify frequent commonalities between participant responses. The researchers then organized the codes into themes, which were then summarized in the results of this study.

Results: The first research question of this study sought to understand who the key stakeholders in the food pantry program were, and the results concluded those who had personal value and had attention directed towards food insecurity in their community. The second research question focused on the development of the program to understand what guided the decisions made by the founding members of the board and from these questions the themes of network, mentorship, and student leadership emerged. The third focus of this study was to examine the challenges that were encountered during the development of the food pantry program and the outcome was the themes of access, transitional structure, and temporary solution.

Conclusion: The School Street Food Pantry brought together the representatives from all the stakeholders to organize a solution to food insecurity among students of higher education, albeit a temporary solution. By combining their expertise, experience, and personal values, the School Street Food Pantry’s board was able to develop a program that serves over 100 students each week.

Access Type

Thesis-Open Access

DOI

http://doi.org/10.30707/ETD2020.Fast.E

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