Qualitative Research

Qualitative research to amplify the voices of students and other college stakeholders tackling food insecurity:

Focus groups were conducted with 53 students attending a 2-year or 4-year college or university in Minnesota. To be eligible to participate, students had to self-identify (via a 2-question food insecurity screener based on the USDA’s Food Security Survey) as food insecure. The focus group questions centered around the students’ financial concerns, in particular how these concerns relate to food access and expenses. Participants also completed a brief survey asking about food insecurity and demographics.

Twenty-four key stakeholders from colleges and universities across the state also participated in in-depth semi-structured interviews with our team. These included staff, student leaders, faculty and other decision makers actively involved in addressing or planning efforts focusing on student food insecurity on campus.

Our team is currently preparing our findings for publication.