Erika Vasquez, Contributing Writer
A new bill that would allow university students to donate unused meal plan credits passed the Virginia Senate last month — the latest piece in a series of legislation seeking to address student hunger.
The proposal would add on to the Hunger-Free Campus Food Pantry Grant Program, an initiative enshrined into law last year to fund food banks on and around campuses.
The swipe donation bill was introduced by Sen. Danica Roem, D-Manassas, who is known for sponsoring bills to “feed hungry kids.” It renames the program and expands on the qualifications needed for a school to receive a Hunger-Free Campus grant.
Universities given the Hunger-Free Campus status that have meal swipe services — such as VCU — would be required to establish student meal credit sharing programs on top of continuing their on-campus food pantry programs.
Students would be able to voluntarily donate unused meal plan credits to be distributed for use by other students at campus dining halls or on-campus food pantries, such as the VCU Ram Pantry. Donated swipes could also be used by on-campus food pantries to support themselves.
The bill leaves the institutions responsible for developing procedures for the program, including how students may donate and receive their meal plan credits.
A VCU Dining Services spokesperson declined a request for comment regarding its position on the swipe donation program and any guidance to students who cannot use their swipes, and said the university does not typically comment on pending legislation.
The bill was filed to create sustainable solutions to address basic food needs on campuses, raise awareness of services offered on campuses to address food insecurity and build strategic partnerships at federal, state and local levels to address food insecurity.
Food insecurity among college students is an emerging public health issue. An estimated 23% of college students, or 3.8 million, experienced food insecurity in 2020, according to a report by the United States Government Accountability Office.
A 2022-2023 research study done at VCU stated that roughly 35% of the university’s 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students were food insecure. Researchers found links between physical, mental and academic performance and food security.
Student food insecurity is an equity issue that impacts many students, but students from underrepresented groups or low-income backgrounds generally experience the challenge at a greater rate, according to the National Library of Medicine.
First-year pharmacy student Jason Ip said he has shared swipes with other students before — even without the proposed program.
“I just want to make sure my friends have something to eat at the moment, since some of my friends are also not on the meal plan and getting food is kinda inconvenient during school time and in between classes,” Ip said.
Ip further noted how the bill would make sharing swipes more convenient, as students currently have to share their physical student IDs with each other to use each other’s swipes.
“It’s just more convenient, cause you won’t have to be with them to swipe for them, if we implemented a system where we can send swipes easily for them to get food for themselves, it would make things much smoother,” Ip said.
Some students said they wished something similar to the bill could have been implemented earlier.
“Man, that’s kinda not fair,” said Mai Nguyen, a fourth-year computer science student. “In my freshman year, a lot of my freshman peers didn’t eat out a lot, since they either didn’t like the food or they would instead rather save their swipes and cook, so at the end of the semester, they would still have a lot of swipes left in their account.”
Nguyen said passing the bill is a great opportunity.
“I’m glad that it’s becoming a thing, but I wish I had that opportunity to use it, but it’s going towards the right steps, so I’m not going to complain much,” Nguyen said.
The swipe donation bill has been referred to a House committee and could be heard by the chamber later this session. The General Assembly is expected to adjourn in March. The final deadline for the governor to sign or veto any legislation is May 25.