ORLANDO, Fla. – The food pantry at Valencia College west campus expanded in a different way to give students in need a chance to shop for groceries at no cost.
The pantry is called “VCentials” and it’s a new space where students can find snacks, canned food, protein, and even hygiene products.
“I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine trying to learn algebra at the same time that I’m hungry. I had one of our students tell us, you know the difference between high school and college is? In high school, I got lunch,” said Kathleen Plinske, president of Valencia College.
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According to a 2021 survey administered by the college, 40% of students reported they were financially unable to buy meals.
Student Thomas Jarrett said he’s seen the demand over the last several months.
“I’ve seen in some instances 200 a month, some instances 125, so we do see a lot of students and like I said, previously, that was the first summer we had open, and we already saw crazy amount of students coming in,” Jarrett said.
The Florida Blue Foundation donated close to $400,000 in grants to Valencia College to expand the program.
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