Financial aid for food on campus?

By Kayla Lugo – _{a student submission}

UNIVERSITY CENTER – Tuition, textbooks, and registration fees can be covered by financial aid at Delta College, while food is not.

Delta has two places for students to purchase food, the Red Brix Café and Coffee N More. It’s an expense that students must pay for out-of-pocket. I firmly believe that food served at Delta should have the option to be paid for using financial aid.

While it may not seem like a huge expense, the total amount of money spent on food can be surprising when you add up the numbers at the end of a semester or year. I have spent almost $300 between Coffee N More and Red Brix Café during the fall semester as of December 6, 2022.

I received a financial aid refund this semester of $363 because my financial aid award exceeded all my charges that were covered. The refund money was transferred to my bank account. While I can use it for my meals at Delta, all my refund money is not specifically used for meals because it gets mingled up with other purchases I make.

Local universities have meal plans or meal memberships for their students. CMU, for example, has three different ways for residential students to get meals. That is not the only in-state university to have meal plans. SVSU also has meal plans.

Delta College does not have any meal plans or meal memberships. I believe that it is because Delta is a community college while SVSU and CMU are 4-year universities. 

Some people will say that college students need to be financially independent and learn how to budget. Regardless, food is an essential necessity for humans, including college students and not everyone is lucky to have three meals a day.

Hunger is something that is not always visible and can affect anyone, including you or someone you know. Some students must visit the Student Food Pantry because they cannot afford a meal at Red Brix or Coffee N More. 

Students can do something to change this. To have food paid for by financial aid, students must contact the financial aid office at financialaid@delta.edu and the president’s office at presidentsoffice@delta.edu. Tell them to incorporate food into financial aid charges.

If enough students say that they want their meals at Delta to be paid for with financial aid, then Delta officials will hear us and hopefully agree to make the change. 

This is not just about not having to physically pay for food, it is about those who are facing hunger being able to enjoy Red Brix burgers the Coffee N More desserts without worrying about financials.