Shedding light on Food Insecurity at MSU

MSU’s Office of Health Advancement (OHA), located right across the street from Hannon Hall, offers resources and puts on programs about health and wellness for students. The office works to educate, empower and energize the MSU community. 

One such program is the Basic Needs Program (BNP). If you haven’t heard of it, you’re not alone. MSU Biochemistry student Marguerite Kibodeaux, a food insecurity intern for the Bounty of the Bridgers, set up a table on campus to talk about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Her main goal for putting up the table was to start conversations about food insecurity. 

“I think there’s a lot of stigma around identifying with food insecurity, especially as a college student. So, a lot of what the goal of tabling is to get people to talk about it,” she said.

According to MSU’s Nutrition Education Program, more than 1 in 10 Montanans struggle with food insecurity. Kibodeaux made clear that food insecurity isn’t just an income or poverty issue, but also one of access and education. She has been working in the food access and education sector for almost ten years, starting in middle school with volunteer programs and food pantries. Her current association with the BNP has her working for Bounty of the Bridgers, the OHA’s  food pantry for MSU students, faculty and staff. 

When she isn’t working at the Bounty of the Bridges food pantry desk, Kibodeaux keeps busy interfacing with local businesses and grocery stores to help fill the pantry. She loves her job and the rewarding nature of helping people. “You walk somebody through the pantry, and in that moment, you know you’re really helping them,” she said. This past week, she said she spent most of her time at the table on campus helping raise awareness for the SNAP program.

The table had to be moved inside due to the cold weather, but it still had many visitors throughout its time on campus. The table had information about the SNAP program, a federal program that helps people get the food they need for themselves and their families. 

While it is simple in theory, SNAP is more complicated than it might seem. Applying for the benefits is a lengthy process and has many confusing requirements and conditions. Kibodeaux can also help directly with this, as she offers services to meet one-on-one with students and help people figure out where they lie in terms of the SNAP application. “It’s super confusing, it’s super difficult to navigate, and I won’t lie, it took me a long time to figure it out,” she said. 

The program has its shortcomings, according to her, but Kibodeaux herself is available as a resource to counteract that. When asked if SNAP was working to help the community, Kibodeaux said, “It’s a good start.”  Events such as this are a first step in helping the food-insecure community in Bozeman, but certainly aren’t the end of efforts to help out. Kibodeaux says she wants to start with events like the tabling, and as awareness builds, move on to doing workshops on how to apply for SNAP. She also mentioned the BNP’s plans to get involved with student organizations on campus and present to clubs about what the SNAP program is.

Kibodeaux’s goal of outreach is starting to come to fruition. She said her tabling was a success in that it got people interested in the idea of food insecurity and what that could mean. There is a long way to go on this front, however. While food insecurity brings to mind a lack of income, Kibodeaux made clear that food insecurity is more than just a money problem. According to her, not knowing how to cook or not knowing how to grocery shop are two common issues specifically with college students. 

Another issue she talked about is time. Not having enough time in the day to eat lunch is also food insecurity, according to Kibodeaux, but she has a workable solution to that. The Grab N Go snack program at Bounty of the Bridgers is a program that allows people to come in and quickly grab something healthy to eat, which can help with all three aspects of food insecurity. 

The stigma surrounding food insecurity is yet another unfortunate problem. “There is a lot of othering when it comes to conversations about food insecurity, of just, like, that’s not me,” she said. 

Having open and honest conversations about food and its role in your life is the best way to break down this negative belief of food insecurity. Kibodeaux’s passion for her work was clear, and her goal is truly to help her community. 

If you are interested in volunteering your time to Bounty of the Bridgers you simply need to fill out this form to be added to their email list: https://www.montana.edu/oha/bounty-of-the-bridgers/volunteer.html.

If extra time is not what you would like to give but still want to help. You can also donate non-perishable goods or household items at the pantry during operating hours.