The SFSS Board of Directors has recently passed a motion to renew the Emergency Food Bank Pilot program for Spring 2014. See below for an Open Letter from the Board of Directors to learn more about the program.

 

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December 11, 2013 

 

To the Members of the Simon Fraser Student Society and the SFU Community,

 

Over the summer of 2013, the SFSS Food Bank Working Group met with various stakeholders regarding SFU Student Services’ decision to close the SFU Food Bank and move to an information and referral model. On October 1, 2013, we launched the SFSS Emergency Food Bank Certificate Pilot Program in the hopes of addressing students’ need for immediate access to food. The SFSS Emergency Food Bank Pilot Program provides students who self-identify as being in financial need with food certificates, valued at $25, valid for redemption at Nesters SFU Burnaby. This Pilot Program was designed as a first-line response to student hunger without referring students to distant, off-campus resources. Undergraduate students are eligible to access these food certificates up to three times per semester by registering through a websurvey. More information is available at www.sfss.ca/foodbank.

 

The SFSS Board of Directors passed a motion to renew the SFSS Emergency Food Bank Certificate Program into the Spring 2014 Semester. With Nesters food certificates, students have a wider access to fresh food and various dietary options previously unavailable through the SFU Food Bank. The SFSS hopes that these food certificates will be used as an emergency measure for undergraduate individuals or families as a means of supplementing their food availability during pressing situations. We are pleased that SFU Student Services has matched the financial commitment of the SFSS for the Fall 2013 term and we look forward to working together collaboratively.

 

We recognize the concerns regarding affordability, access and stigma around needs-based food services and are continuing to work with the university and other stakeholders in order to find a wider spectrum of options for students. We are cognizant of the fact that this program does not address all food concerns and campuses. However, we truly look forward to continuing work and dialogue in order to implement the most effective and inclusive system possible to meet all forms of student food access needs.

 

Your feedback and involvement are appreciated and will help shape the direction of this program into the future. Please join us for our Food Bank Town Hall Meeting on January 27, 2014 from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm in MBC 2290. All members of the SFU Community are encouraged to attend. We hope to collect feedback on our Emergency Food Bank Certificate program and engage in dialogue about how we can further serve student food access needs.

 

Sincerely,