For the fifth year in row, the #RealCollege survey has documented a crisis affecting American higher education. Researchers conclude that more than 6 million students are affected by food and/or housing insecurity.
The #RealCollege survey is led by the Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice at Temple University. In 2019, the survey was completed by more than 167,000 students at 227 community colleges and four-year colleges and universities located in 44 states and the District of Columbia.
A remarkable 17% of students who answered the survey were homeless at some point in the last year, almost 40% were food insecure, and almost half faced housing insecurity. The results are consistent with the prior #RealCollege surveys and those led by other researchers around the nation.
“It is clear that college is now about serious financial struggles, not partying. Money weighs heavily on students’ minds, and without a safe place to sleep and enough to eat they cannot concentrate on learning,” said Dr. Sara Goldrick-Rab, founding director of the Hope Center and the leading expert on basic needs insecurity among college students. “This is a waste of talent and it undermines our economy. To become student-ready, colleges need to move beyond food pantries and take preventative measures, and policymakers must support them. There are six pieces of federal legislation to address these issues pending in Congress now—it is time to act!”
Among the 167,000 respondents in this year’s survey:
· 39% were food insecure in the last 30 days;
· 46% were housing insecure in the previous year;
· 17% were homeless in the previous year; and
· Some groups of students were more at risk than others: community college students, racial/ethnic minorities, and LGBTQ students were all more likely than others to face one or more of these challenges
This year’s response rate of 167,000 students represents about 8% of the total number of students contacted for the survey, according to the Hope Center. “We think these are conservative estimates of the true extent of the problem, since students without funds rarely have time to do surveys or access to the necessary technology for e-surveys like this one,” said Christine Baker-Smith, Managing Director of the Hope Center. “We don’t advertise the survey as focused on food or housing, and do not offer any help.” The Hope Center’s research team estimates that that the figures extrapolate to at least 6 million affected students.
There are many interconnected reasons college students are facing basic needs insecurity today, according to the report. Some of these are:
· Tuition is up, but more importantly, financial aid to students has not kept up with the cost of living although college loans are still available;
· Students are being asked to pay for books and tuition but lack the financial support the system demands—many students today are themselves parents or are supporting other family members;
· Employers are less likely to want to hire students since they may have complicated schedules, and for the students who can find flexible work, the minimum wage has not kept up with cost of living increases;
· Th social safety net is not what it used to be—today, many college students are excluded from programs such as SNAP, for example; and
· College themselves are struggling with insufficient money to help students in need. For example, in public higher education, budgets have been cut 25% on a per-student basis over the last 30 years.
Because the problem stems from many different avenues, the solutions are multi-pronged as well. The first step, according to the report, is for colleges and universities to admit there is a problem. The Hope Center is offering to support any institution that wants to address these problems; they can sign up here. Among the programs the report describes that have helped at campuses across the U.S.:
· Meal vouchers or swipes;
· Access to public benefits, such as SNAP, or transportation/housing assistance;
· Emergency aid that students can access quickly, for unforeseen expenses like car repairs or groceries;
· Case management, so the students have a contact on campus who can help them navigate the help available to them.
In 2020, the Hope Center plans to release the following reports that focus on different college student populations and aspects of student life:
· March 24: Student Athletes
· April TBA: Staff and Faculty
· April 8: Parenting Students
· April 13: Philadelphia
· May 13: Transportation
· May TBA: Mental Health
The full #RealCollege National Survey 2020 can be found online at this link: http://hope4college.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/2019_RealCollege_Survey_Report.pdf
The colleges and universities that took part in this year’s #RealCollege Survey are:
Two-Year Colleges
Aims Community College (CO)
Alexandria Technical & Community College (MN)
Amarillo College (TX)
Anoka Technical College (MN)
Anoka-Ramsey Community College (MN)
Arapahoe Community College (CO)
Atlantic Cape Community College (NJ)
Austin Community College District (TX)
Bay de Noc Community College (MI)
Bellevue College (WA)
Bergen Community College (NJ)
Blackhawk Technical College (WI)
Blue Mountain Community College (OR)
Bristol Community College (MA)
Brookdale Community College (NJ)
Brookhaven College (TX)
Bucks County Community College (PA)
Bunker Hill Community College (MA)
Camden County College (NJ)
Cayuga Community College (NY)
Cedar Valley College (TX)
Central Lakes College Brainerd (MN)
Central Lakes College Staples (MN)
Central Oregon Community College (OR)
Centralia College (WA)Cerritos College (CA)
Chaffey College (CA)
Clackamas Community College (OR)
Clark College (WA)
Clatsop Community College (OR)
Clover Park Technical College (WA)
Columbia Basin College (WA)
Columbia Gorge Community College (OR)
Community College of Allegheny County (PA)
Community College of Baltimore County (MD)
Community College of Philadelphia (PA)
Community College of Rhode Island (RI)
Compton College (CA)
County College of Morris (NJ)
Cuyamaca College (CA)
Dabney S. Lancaster Community College (VA)
Delaware County Community College (PA)
Durham Technical Community College (NC)
Dutchess Community College (NY)
Eastfield College (TX)
Edmonds Community College (WA)
El Centro College (TX)
Essex County College (NJ)
Everett Community College (WA)
Finger Lakes Community College (NY)
Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College (MN)
Galveston College (TX)
Glendale Community College (CA)
Grayson College (TX)
Green River College (WA)
Greenville Technical College (SC)
Grossmont College (CA)
Hibbing Community College (MN)
Highline College (WA)
Holyoke Community College (MA)
Hudson County Community College (NJ)
Hudson Valley Community College (NY)
Itasca Community College (MN)
Ivy Tech Community College (IN)
Jamestown Community College (NY)
Jefferson State Community College (AL)
Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College (WI)
Lake Washington Institute of Technology (WA)
Leeward Community College (HI)
Linn-Benton Community College (OR)
Lone Star College (TX)
Lower Columbia College (WA)
Massasoit Community College (MA)
Mesabi Range College (MN)
Middlesex Community College (MA)
Middlesex County College (NJ)
Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MN)
Minnesota State College Southeast (MN)
Minnesota State Community and Technical College (MN)
Mohawk Valley Community College (NY)
Monroe Community College (NY)
Montgomery College (MD)
Mountain View College (TX)
Mt. Hood Community College (OR)
Napa Valley College (CA)
Nassau Community College (NY)
North Central Texas College (TX)
North Lake College (TX)
North Seattle College (WA)
Northern Essex Community College (MA)
Northern Virginia Community College (VA)
Northland Community and Technical College (MN)
Northwest Technical College (MN)
Ocean County College (NJ)
Olympic College (WA)
Onondaga Community College (NY)
Oregon Coast Community College (OR)
Orleans Technical College (PA)
Ozarks Technical Community College (MO)
Passaic County Community College (NJ)
Patrick Henry Community College (VA)
Pellissippi State Community College (TN)
Pierce College-Fort Steilacoom (WA)
Pierce College-Puyallup (WA)
Portland Community College (OR)
Rainy River Community College (MN)
Raritan Valley Community College (NJ)
Red Rocks Community College (CO)
Reedley College (CA)
Renton Technical College (WA)
Richland College (TX)
Ridgewater College (MN)
Riverland Community College (MN)
Riverside City College (CA)
Rochester Community and Technical College (MN)
Rogue Community College (OR)
Rowan College at Burlington County (NJ)
Rowan College of South Jersey (NJ)
SUNY Adirondack (NY)
SUNY Corning Community College (NY)
SUNY Erie Community College (NY)
SUNY Morrisville (NY)
SUNY Orange (NY)
Saint Paul College (MN)
Salish Kootenai College (MT)
San Diego City College (CA)
San Diego Continuing Education (CA)
San Diego Mesa College (CA)
San Diego Miramar College (CA)
San Jose City College (CA)
Santa Rosa Junior College (CA)
Santiago Canyon College (CA)
Seattle Central College (WA)
Shoreline Community College (WA)
Skagit Valley College (WA)
South Puget Sound Community College (WA)
South Seattle College (WA)
Southwestern Oregon Community College (OR)
Spokane Community College (WA)
Spokane Falls Community College (WA)
St. Cloud Technical and Community College (MN)
St. Philip’s College (TX)
Sussex County Community College (NJ)
Tacoma Community College (WA)
Tallahassee Community College (FL)
Texas Southmost College (TX)
Tillamook Bay Community College (OR)
Treasure Valley Community College (OR)
Trinity Valley Community College (TX)
Umpqua Community College (OR)
Union County College (NJ)
Wake Technical Community College (NC)
Walla Walla Community College (WA)
Wallace State Community College Hanceville (AL)
Warren County Community College (NJ)
Wenatchee Valley College (WA)
Westchester Community College (NY)
Western Technical College (WI)
Whatcom Community College (WA)
White Earth Tribal and Community College (MN)
Yakima Valley College (WA)
Four-Year Colleges and Universities
Alfred State College (NY)*
Bridgewater State University (MA)
Cedar Crest College (PA)
Colorado School of Mines (CO)
Colorado State University—Fort Collins (CO)
Colorado State University— Global (CO)
Daytona State College (FL)*
Diné College (AZ)*
Drexel University (PA)
Emporia State University (KS)
Fashion Institute of Technology (NY)*
Fitchburg State University (MA)
Florida State College at Jacksonville (FL)*
Fort Lewis College (CO)
Framingham State University (MA)
George Fox University (OR)
Grand Valley State University (MI)
La Salle University (PA)
Lehigh University (PA)
Maryville College (TN)
Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MA)
Mercy College of Ohio (OH)*
Metropolitan State University (MN)
Metropolitan State University of Denver (CO)
Miami Dade College (FL)*
Minnesota State University Moorhead (MN)
Muhlenberg College (PA)
Northern Vermont University Johnson (VT)
Oglala Lakota College (SD)
Rhode Island College (RI)
SUNY Cobleskill (NY)
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (NY)
SUNY College Old Westbury (NY)
SUNY Cortland (NY)
SUNY Delhi (NY)*
SUNY Empire State College (NY)
SUNY Fredonia (NY)
SUNY Maritime College (NY)
SUNY Morrisville (NY)*
SUNY New Paltz (NY)
SUNY Oneonta (NY)
SUNY Oswego (NY)
SUNY Polytechnic institute (NY)
SUNY Potsdam (NY)
SUNY Upstate Medical University (NY)
Salem Community College (NJ)
Southwest Minnesota State University (MN)
St. John’s University (NY)
St. Norbert College (WI)
Stony Brook University (NY)
Temple University (PA)
The College at Brockport (NY)
The University of Montana (MT)
United Tribes Technical College (ND)*
University of Alaska Fairbanks (AK)
University of Central Missouri (MO)
University of Colorado Denver (CO)
University of Kansas (KS)
University of Massachusetts Boston (MA)
University of Massachusetts Lowell (MA)
University of Memphis (TN)
University of Missouri St. Louis (MO)
University of Northern Colorado (CO)
West Virginia University (WV)
Western Washington University (WA)
Westfield State University (MA)
York College of Pennsylvania (PA)
* Institution primarily offer credentials other than a Bachelor’s degree and was included in two-year rates.
