The Potential of Public Benefit Programs to Address College Student Basic Needs and Support Academic Success

Session Submission Type: Panel

Abstract

National data indicate that nearly one in four college students suffers from food insecurity, and eight percent of college students are homeless (Goldrick-Rab, 2023). Food and housing insecurity are associated with lower levels of academic success for college students (Anand and Gicheva, 2024; Leung et al., 2021; Maroto, Snelling, and Linck, 2015; Martinez et. al., 2020). Colleges and states are pursuing varying approaches to address student basic needs such as food pantries and emergency aid (e.g., California Community College Chancellor’s Office, 2024; Hodara et al., 2023; Nix et al., 2023). Some college and state efforts have focused on increasing student access to public benefit programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid (e.g., Burnside, Gilkesson, and Baker, 2021; Duke-Benfield and Davis, 2024; Ladkau and Ward, 2022; Loofbourrow and Scherr, 2023; Swipe Out Hunger, 2024). College students face barriers to accessing programs like SNAP due to complex eligibility requirements and administrative processes (Larin, 2024).State and college outreach and application support efforts aim to help college students to navigate these processes and access additional benefits to address student basic needs and minimize barriers to academic success.

This panel explores the promise and limitations of public benefit programs as supports for college students. Relatively little is known about student participation in SNAP and student applications and denials for SNAP. Three of the papers in this session leverage descriptive analysis of administrative data from California and Colorado to describe patterns in eligibility, applications, denials, and participation. One paper describes patterns over time and the characteristics of students in Colorado who were likely eligible for and participating in SNAP. A second paper examines changes in SNAP participation as students transition from high school to college in California. A third paper explores trends in applications and denials for Colorado students during the pandemic, when there were large federal expansions in SNAP eligibility.

There is also limited evidence on prevalence of and effectiveness of college and state efforts to connect students to public benefits. One paper describes state and local approaches to SNAP outreach and application support in Colorado, and identifies promising strategies for delivering this support from colleges identified as “leaders” in basic needs. Another paper examines efforts in Washington state to expand public benefit participation among college students and assesses the efficacy of an intervention to connect students to services. and explore how application and denial patterns for college students shifted during the pandemic. 

Our discussants bring both policy and research perspectives and will discuss both the quality of the evidence and the implications for scaling state and college public benefits support efforts.

Policy Area

• Education

Secondary Policy Area

• Family and Child Policy

Chair

• Lindsay Daugherty, RAND Corporation

Discussants

• Sade Bonilla, University of Pennsylvania

• Daniel Oliver, WA Student Achievement Council

Organizer

• Lindsay Daugherty, RAND Corporation

Individual Presentations

• The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in Colorado: Evidence on College Student Participation and College Services - Presenting Author: Brian M Phillips, RAND Corporation

• Supporting Young People's Food Security: CalFresh Participation During and After High School - Presenting Author: Jennifer Hogg, University of California, Berkeley

• Trends in Denials of Applications to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Colorado College Students - Presenting Author: Jennifer Kret, Colorado Department of Human Services

• The Impact of Targeted Outreach on Washington College Students’ Use of Public Benefits and Supports - Presenting Author: Sara Goldrick-Rab, Education Northwest