By Parisa Burton
Opinions Editor
The New Jersey Office of the Secretary of Higher Education announced its Hunger-Free Campus Act grants for fiscal year 2025, awarding $1.2 million to 34 institutions. The College received $37,000 of this sum, reflecting this cycle’s competitive nature, as program applications increased by 150% this year, according to a Nov. 7 OSHE press release.
The Shop @TCNJ is in charge of allocating the money received by the grant, being the primary addressor to food insecurity on campus. It is located in Campus Town and provides food, household items and hygiene products at no cost. There is no requirement for individuals to demonstrate financial need to have access to this resource.
Shop Manager Nicole Harris initially submitted a proposal for a Hunger-Free Campus grant for $75,000 through the OSHE. However, a recent survey found that over one in three students in New Jersey lack “consistent access to adequate food resources,” resulting in a wider allocation of the grant money across more schools and a smaller sum to each institution. According to Harris, OSHE also had a greater total of $1.5 million to give out last year.
“Although it was less, we're still thankful for it,” Harris said. “We had to adjust the original budget that we had put together for $75,000 down to $37,000.”
According to Harris, the budget is as follows: $23,100 will be spent on student salaries, $1,440 on professional cleaning services, $9,000 for shop replenishments, $500 for marketing, and another $500 for gift card incentives for the annual survey. An additional $2,500 will be set aside, which will likely be put towards fundraising.
“We are a free choice pantry… So it's more like going to a store versus a food pantry where you go once a week and they just hand you a bag of food,” said Harris.
The Shop essentially functions as a funnel to raise awareness about broader food insecurity, and this funding helps support those efforts. Since The Shop operates as a department and not a registered student organization, funds need to be allocated for tabling and bringing in any outside resources.
“The Shop is a food pantry in the basic sense, but offers everything between bringing in specialists who work with United Way of Trenton to talk to students about applying for SNAP benefits, partnering with Trinity United Methodist Church to do a grab-and-go lunch where students can come and get hoagies, and paying for the space in the Stud in order to facilitate this,” said Harris.
One of the greatest challenges that The Shop faces is increasing its awareness, despite all programming efforts, according to Harris. Over the summer, Harris tabled for four days in the Brower Student Center, speaking to about 900 first-year students about the resource. However, she noted that when asked in a subsequent presentation if they knew what The Shop was, very few first-year students raised their hands.
While boosting awareness has proven difficult, Harris believes that it is important to recognize its incremental progress. Last year, in September and October, the number of visits was less than 100; this year, they reached 200.
The Shop has been receiving grants through OSHE since FY2023 where it received $99,000 and was given an additional award of $25,000 in the summer of 2023. In FY2024, it requested a grant of $75,000 and was awarded $69,000. This year, its proposal for $75,000 fell short by $38,000.
The Shop is currently awaiting responses from two key partners, having applied for a $30,000 grant with Mercer Street Friends, who supplies it with eggs, produce and frozen meat. The funding will be used for replenishments, and The Shop is also exploring the possibility of smart lockers to provide access to resources during closed hours. The team is also awaiting a response on a $6,000 grant application to Swipe Out Hunger.
Harris has also been working on Campaign 193, where professional staff can support The Shop with a one-time monetary donation, a continual donation of $5 per pay period or $130 annually.
“The idea is that if I can get 193 people to donate consistently through Campaign 193, this would bring $25,000 to The Shop annually, where we can have an endowment with the Office of Advancement which would give us an annual income,” Harris said. She added that this initiative would help to make The Shop self-sufficient in the long run without relying solely on grant funding.
While the shop is extremely grateful for the funding it has received from OSHE, one thing remains clear: it needs more financing to sustain and expand its operations.
Hunger is not a choice for students, and food insecurity remains an ongoing issue. According to the Government Accountability Office, about 23% of students in the U.S. experienced food insecurity in 2020.
“If we're filling the gap and helping students fill their bellies, then they're able to be productive students,” Harris said. “You can't be the best student when you’re hungry.”
