SNAP Cuts Threaten Food Security for College Students as Government Shutdown Continues
WASHINGTON—The political stalemate gripping the nation’s capital has created a ticking time bomb for thousands of college students who depend on federal food assistance to survive. As the government shutdown enters another week, students like Faith Harper, a senior at Howard University, face the terrifying prospect of losing the benefits that keep them nourished while pursuing their education.
The Human Face of Federal Assistance
Harper receives $260 monthly through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), a figure that might seem modest to some but represents her nutritional lifeline. “I’ve been on SNAP for about a year now,” Harper explained, her voice carrying the weight of experience. “I’m good at budgeting, so I make meals that last a week, but sometimes I just don’t eat. That’s not good, I know, but I try to make it work.”
Her words reveal the difficult calculations food-insecure students make daily: which meals to skip, how to stretch limited resources, and how to maintain academic performance while battling hunger. For Harper, SNAP functions as more than just financial assistance—it’s a stabilizer that allows her to focus on her studies rather than her next meal.
Campus Food Deserts Worsen the Crisis
The recent closure of Wonder Plaza, a strip of affordable restaurants and stores on Georgia Avenue that served many Howard students, has intensified Harper’s dependence on SNAP benefits. The disappearance of these budget-friendly options has created what amounts to a campus food desert, leaving students with fewer alternatives when federal assistance disappears.
“Without SNAP, I wouldn’t be able to get food delivered or shop for groceries outside campus without dipping into money I don’t have,” Harper noted, highlighting how geographic and financial constraints compound the problem.
A National Crisis on College Campuses
Harper’s situation reflects a broader national emergency. According to a recent report by the Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice, nearly 40% of college students experience food insecurity. This alarming statistic underscores how hunger has become a silent epidemic in higher education, one that disproportionately affects students at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
At institutions like Howard, where economic disparities intersect with limited campus food options, federal nutrition programs often serve as the first line of defense against student hunger. The potential termination of these benefits threatens to undo that fragile safety net.
The Ripple Effect of Benefit Cuts
“If this ends, it’s going to impact other students as well, not just myself,” Harper said. “It’s heartbreaking to hear.” Her concern extends beyond her own circumstances to the wider student community and the vulnerable populations in the surrounding area.
“We’re in a metropolitan city with a huge homeless population,” she observed, connecting the potential SNAP cuts to broader issues of urban poverty and food justice. This perspective reveals how campus hunger exists within a larger ecosystem of food insecurity that affects entire communities.
Juggling Multiple Crises
Today’s college students navigate a perfect storm of financial pressures: rising tuition costs, escalating housing expenses, mounting student debt, and often inadequate part-time employment. Against this backdrop, food becomes another variable in a complex equation of survival. When nutrition assistance disappears, students face impossible choices between educational expenses and basic sustenance.
What does it say about our priorities when those pursuing higher education must worry about where their next meal will come from? How can we expect academic excellence from students struggling with hunger?
Community Resilience Versus Systemic Failure
Despite her anxieties, Harper maintains faith in community networks. She points to food kitchens in Washington, D.C., and her hometown of Chicago that mobilize during crises. “I believe communities will respond with compassion,” she said, acknowledging the grassroots efforts that often fill gaps left by government inaction.
Yet she worries that local initiatives alone cannot compensate for the withdrawal of federal support. “I just hope they see what’s going on in the streets and actually do something about it,” Harper said of lawmakers. “Empathy is hard to find, especially in the big house.”
The Looming Holiday Season
If Congress fails to reach a budget agreement, Harper and thousands of students like her will enter the holiday season facing empty shelves and missed meals. The timing feels particularly cruel—a period traditionally associated with abundance and celebration transformed into one of anxiety and deprivation.
For students already balancing academic responsibilities, employment, and financial pressures, hunger represents an additional burden they never anticipated when enrolling in college. It’s an assignment they didn’t sign up for, and one with consequences far beyond the classroom.
A Call for Policy With Perspective
The situation facing SNAP-dependent students highlights the need for policies that recognize the changing demographics of higher education. Today’s college population includes far more independent students, working learners, and those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds than in previous generations. Federal nutrition programs haven’t fully adapted to these realities, leaving gaps that threaten both individual success and national investment in education.
As the shutdown continues, the clock keeps ticking for Faith Harper and students like her. Their ability to continue their education—and indeed, their basic well-being—hangs in the balance. The question remains: will policymakers recognize the human cost of their impasse before the semester ends?
Matthew Bluford is a junior journalism major and sports administration minor at Howard University from Minneapolis, Minnesota.