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Portland State University in Oregon will be the first four-year institution in the country to receive a Training and Education Program grant from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
The $277,000 award will help the university hire a full-time case manager to do outreach, develop progress plans for students and connect students to resources; a half-time administrative assistant for enrollment and reporting; and reimbursements covering tuition and fees, books, clothing, tools, childcare, and transportation for students to attend career and technical programs, according to a news release. It also will be used to help students apply for federal food assistance benefits.
“In the wealthiest country in the world, no one should go hungry,” said U.S. representative Earl Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat, in a statement. “Last year, I met with a group of Portland State students, and I was moved to hear their stories of their struggles with food insecurity. We have a responsibility to do our part to provide them with the resources they need.”
Portland State hopes to provide wraparound supports to about 50 students in the first year of the grant, according to the release. The college is also researching how best to support struggling students with the recently established Homelessness Research and Action Collaborative.
In 2016, nearly two million students were potentially eligible for the benefits but didn't receive them, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office report.
The Training and Education Program already has been used to serve community college students in Washington and Oregon.
