Campus Food Security: An Approach Toward Co-Creating Change

Abstract

Campus food insecurity is a growing problem within institutions of higher education in the United States and reflects a critical question of what educational access, equity, and student success means for today’s students. There are several campus-wide efforts at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst to address this challenge, including the Campus Food Security Project where the reflective practitioner serves as the Food Insecurity Coordinator AmeriCorps VISTA with the Dean of Students Office. This Training Course Linked Capstone (CLC) serves as a reflective analysis of the reflective practitioner’s efforts to integrate her own educational journey, learning from SIT, and guiding principles in her work. The reflective practitioner asks 1) How am I co-creating effective learning environments to support the goals of the Campus Food Security Project? and 2) How am I integrating my guiding principles into my every day practice as a reflective practitioner? Through exploration of social justice education, engaged pedagogy, and approaches for co-creating change, research of campus food security, observation at UMass Amherst, and analysis of her community engagement and design work, this CLC deepens the reflective practitioner’s training identity as a lifelong learner while identifying opportunities and recommendations to strengthen and expand campus food security efforts moving forward. Keywords: campus food security, social justice, engaged pedagogy, co-creating change