Hungry in Grad School: You Are Not Alone

With teaching, research and personal obligations, graduate school can be among the most stressful times in a person’s life. One of the first corners to get cut during this harried and low-income period is students’ health.

Blaine Hill/The Hub@TTU

Blaine Hill/The Hub@TTU

“Sometimes in the graduate life, they have to put their health on hold, and food is one of those areas you can care less in,” Ashlee Taylor said.

To combat this problem, the Graduate Student Advisory Council has established a food pantry, said Taylor, who is the group’s president. The launch date is yet to be announced.

GSAC began the project last August. The first step was exploring other universities’ models for food pantries targeting students.

“We never wanted to reinvent the wheel,” she said.

Taylor expects the pantry to be open once or twice a week, depending on donations. The pantry will serve graduate as well as all international students because they may have a difficult time accessing affordable food, Taylor said. More than two-third of Tech’s international students are in graduate school.

GSAC President Ashlee Taylor Blaine Hill/The Hub@TTU

GSAC President Ashlee Taylor
Blaine Hill/The Hub@TTU

The people behind the project are more than just members of GSAC. Taylor said supporters include current or former graduate students.

“We’ve been really fortunate that the cause really resonates with people, and that people have been willing to donate,” Taylor said.

The pantry will keep records and send reports to Texas Tech’s Office of Institutional Research, but the information gathered will be confidential.

“Hunger does carry a stigma, and we don’t want that, so that’s kind of why we have it set up the way we do,” Taylor said.

She added that she hopes no one will avoid the pantry because they feel ashamed. The pantry will allow food to be picked up by friends and family members if some students want to remain absolutely anonymous.

Blaine Hill/The Hub@TTU

Blaine Hill/The Hub@TTU

The Food Pantry’s outreach coordinator, Dylan Bailey, said to be a reliable source of food, the pantry needs more donations. A list of items that the pantry needs is available here. Any donations can be dropped off at the Graduate School in room 328 of the administration building, the Graduate Student Center, and the International Cultural Center.

“I would love if this became something that was huge and really fit the needs of Texas Tech students for years to come,” he said.

Both Taylor and Bailey hope the pantry will continue to operate after they graduate.

“The sky’s the limit for this thing,” Bailey said.

About Blaine Hill

I am the community reporter and a Junior journalism major. I'm an avid book worm and I know how to make pies from scratch.