The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice is driving the #RealCollege movement to assist students’ basic needs for food and housing. Donate to support #RealCollege students.
How are students faring during the ongoing pandemic?
Nearly 200,000 students at 130 community colleges and 72 four-year colleges and universities told us about their food and housing needs in our fall 2020 #RealCollege Survey.
Our report examines the pandemic’s impact on the #RealCollege students who were able to continue their education in this challenging environment. We assessed students’ basic needs security and their well-being as indicated by their employment status, academic engagement, and mental health.
How is COVID-19 affecting students’ well-being?
COVID-19’s impact on higher education has been widely examined as academic disruptions, social isolation, and financial instability threaten students’ dreams of college attainment. Now, a new study conducted by The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice of more than 100,000 undergraduates across the nation reveals the negative implications of the COVID-19 virus on students’ health and well-being.
Analyzing data from the sixth annual #RealCollege Survey, conducted at 202 colleges and universities in 42 states in the fall 2020, Hope Center researchers compared students based on whether or not they reported having had COVID. Almost 7 percent of students said that they had contracted the virus, a likely underestimate.
The #RealCollege Virtual Journey
The Hope Center is offering the #RealCollege Virtual Journey, a free nine-month series of programs focused on information, policy, and practices affecting Basic Needs Insecurity in higher education. Our opening webinar will focus on #RealCollege 2021: Basic Needs Insecurity During the Ongoing Pandemic and details of our new survey. Click here for more details and to sign up for this series.
The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice & Believe in Students are collaborating on the #RealCollege Blog.
Students are humans first.
The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice is redefining what it means to be a student-ready college, with a national movement centering #RealCollege students’ basic needs. Reliable and consistent access to affordable food, housing, transportation, technology, familial care, and health care is a central condition for learning. Without those needs met, far too many students leave college in debt and without degrees.
We are conducting action research and fighting for the resources and supports to help #RealCollege students succeed.
Join the #RealCollege Movement
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“Hungry to Learn” available for free on Yahoo
After years of being ignored, students experiencing food insecurity are finally taken seriously in Soledad O’Brien’s important new documentary Hungry to Learn. It’s a critical investigation into the what students need now to succeed. Everyone who cares about college, works in a college, or is committed to America’s economic recovery should view this documentary and commit to action. Given the current health and economic crisis, there’s never been a more important time.
Thanks to Yahoo, the documentary is now available to stream for free. Seize this opportunity. Show the doc to your colleagues and students. Educate policymakers, fund raise for basic needs programs, and spread the word about the realities of #RealCollege. Share what you do with us at #RealCollege and #HungryToLearn on social media.
#RealCollege
Join the #RealCollege movement to support students’ basic needs!
Projects
Check out our many partnerships focused on changing practice, policy, and public perceptions.
Research and Resources
Read our research and find resources to support your work on campus and in your community.
