COLLEGE SNAP PROJECT
Making it easier for college students to connect with benefits
WHAT IS THE COLLEGE SNAP PROJECT?
The College SNAP Project is a state-by-state guide for college students who need up-to-date information on how to apply for and receive SNAP benefits in their state, and for finding advocacy organizations working on this issue in their state. This crowdsourced knowledge center lets students, administrators, and advocates contribute their firsthand information and use their voice to strengthen the nutrition safety net.
College students experience food insecurity in every state of the Union. In 2016, around 3.3 million students were estimated to be eligible for SNAP, but fewer than half participated. Among the barriers to entry are complicated eligibility criteria, which leave students unable to figure out if they qualify and how to apply for benefits. This guide is designed to reduce college student hunger by helping students navigate these criteria and receive the benefits to which they are entitled.
WHAT IS SNAP?
SNAP—the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is the federal nutrition program that forms the first line of defense against hunger in the U.S. Formerly known as food stamps, this program grants qualifying individuals a monthly benefit to purchase food at participating grocery stores, campus markets, corner stores, farmers markets, and other vendors. The benefits are loaded automatically onto an electronic card, like a debit card, and are refreshed automatically.
While SNAP is a federal program, it is implemented by state governments. That means that applications, agencies, deadlines, and other factors vary from one state to another.
SEE IF YOU ARE ELIGIBLE FOR SNAP
STATE BY STATE INFO
About This Project
The College SNAP Project is was founded as a joint project of Swipe Out Hunger and the Congressional Hunger Center and is now managed by the Student Basic Needs Coalition.
The Student Basic Needs Coalition (SBNC) is a national organization dedicated to addressing food and financial insecurity on college campuses through student leadership, policy advocacy, and technology. A core focus of SBNC’s work is increasing student access to SNAP benefits by providing peer-led navigation support and leveraging technology to simplify the enrollment process. Through partnerships with student organizations, colleges, and policymakers, SBNC has helped connect students to millions in food assistance for students through Navvy, SBNC’s benefits enrollment and screening tool. SBNC also advocates for systemic policy changes at the campus, state, and federal levels to remove barriers preventing eligible students from receiving benefits. By combining direct service with advocacy, SBNC empowers students to secure the resources they need while working toward long-term solutions to food insecurity in higher education.
Swipe Out Hunger is a national nonprofit committed to ending college student hunger. It advises colleges and universities on the design of commonsense and innovative anti-hunger programs.
Founded in 1993 by a bipartisan group of Members of Congress, the Congressional Hunger Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the principle that access to nutritious, affordable, and culturally appropriate food is a basic human right. The Hunger Center develops, inspires, and connects leaders in the movement to end hunger and its root causes, and advocates for public policies that will create a food secure world.