John Burton Advocates for Youth has invited SparkPoint at Skyline College to be a panelist on Addressing Stigma: Strategies for Facilitating Access to Basic Needs Support at Community Colleges, a webinar highlighting ways in which colleges can structure services to encourage student access and reduce the potential shame or embarrassment that prevents students from accessing available benefits. This free webinar is on September 27, 2018 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. To participate, please register at: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/2806412563248964099.
Many post-secondary institutions are developing services to help students address basic needs such as food pantries, benefits counseling, and financial literacy support in response to new data on the prevalence of food and housing insecurity among college students. A significant barrier to accessing these types of services, however, can be the stigma often associated with accessing basic needs resources, making students reluctant to engage with available support.
Students who face hunger, malnutrition, an unstable living situation, or homelessness will struggle to reach their full potential in a classroom. Changing the way we address, interact, and intervene on behalf of students can make a monumental impact in their lives and the lives of their families. We continue to look to improve the way we serve these students and remove the barriers they face to reach their goals.
If you have any questions, please contact Chad Thompson, Director for SparkPoint and Career Services at Skyline College, at thompsonc@smccd.edu.
Article and image by Chad Thompson
