LCC reopens food pantry for fall semester

By Carson Lemon
Staff Reporter

As Lansing Community College starts back up for the fall semester, a resource that can aid many students could potentially go unnoticed. The LCC Student Food Pantry, located in the Adult Resource Center and open 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. every Monday, provides ready-to-eat food and snacks for students in need.

On the Student Success Resources and Events page on the LCC website, students can locate a calendar of upcoming dates, other LCC locations, and details about how the food pantry operates. Students who have questions or may not be able to attend the Student Food Pantry while it is open are encouraged to reach out to their Academic Success Coach for assistance.

When a student enters the Adult Resource Center, located in the StarZone behind the Center for Student Support, they will be asked to show their StarCard to confirm their status as a student. Available for students are entrées such as soup, tuna, rice, and noodle bowls, as well as snacks like fruit cups, trail mix, jerky and more.

According to Adult Resource Center Coordinator Ashley Podleski, the first day of the food pantry had a good turnout, but she expects more students to start attending in the future. “I would imagine it will get busier as the semester goes on and more students learn about the pantry. We did hand out flyers at the Registration Resource Fairs this summer for new students, and there is marketing on the Media Boards around campus,” Podleski said.

For some, the connection between the pantry and the academic focus of a college like LCC isn’t quite clear. For Podleski, the goals of the pantry and the college are extremely aligned. “The food pantry is a way to reach a diverse group of students and help subsidize their needs. The goal is that if students do not have to worry about food, they can focus on being successful in the classroom,” she said.

LCC Success Coach Janelle Brinker has worked with students lacking housing and consistent meals, and has seen firsthand the impact the pantry can make. “You can imagine without stable housing, these students spend a lot of time traveling around town and not being able to settle somewhere for a meal or to rest, so having meals and snacks while on campus made for one less trip to get somewhere for a meal, and allowed these students to stay on campus to connect with other campus resources, get to class, and complete coursework,” said Brinker.

As helpful as the food pantry is, there is always room for improvement. Limited hours and limited resources mean students may not be getting as much support as they could use. Getting more food and a wider range of hours is high on Podleski’s priority list. “We would love to be able to offer more hours for the food pantry and are always looking at more ways to help fund the pantry.”

Currently, the Student Food Pantry relies on funding out of LCC’s general fund, and is not accepting donations at this time.