The Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) expanded its social determinants of student success initiative by adding seven new designations to its list of Hunger Free and Healthy Minds campuses.
The state is now one step closer to having all 31 public institutions of higher education earn the designations. Currently, 25 institutions have the Healthy Minds designation and 26 have the Hunger Free designation.
CDHE created Hunger Free and Healthy Minds Campus Checklists to work with existing resources on college campuses and offer a variety of options to ensure that the needs of students are met. Colorado colleges and universities use the checklists to implement four core programs and six focused initiatives to receive a hunger free or healthy minds designation. The newest institutions receiving designation are:
Healthy Minds:
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs
- Adams State University
- Aims Community College
- Otero College
Hunger Free:
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs
- Otero College
- Western Colorado University
At UCCS, emergency and crisis contact information is included on all digital student IDs, which every student is required to have. UCCS also has an established food pantry, Clyde’s Cupboard, which has been open to students since 2014.
“Students can’t learn if they’re hungry,” said CDHE Executive Director Dr. Angie Paccione. “It sounds simple enough, but we must do a better job of setting our students up for success and it starts with addressing food insecurity and mental health. We hope to see this initiative expanded to address other barriers to success like inadequate access to transportation and childcare. CDHE is committed to the success of every student in Colorado.”
CDHE’s Office of Educational Equity is creating a basic needs coalition steering committee where an individual from every campus across the state provides information on how to make higher education truly accessible to all, regardless of socio-economic status or background. This coalition will meet regularly to ensure all students in Colorado have access to sufficient food, housing, mental and physical health, and the financial resources to succeed inside and outside the classroom.
For more information, visit https://highered.colorado.gov/social-determinants-of-student-success.