Tour of Eagles Nest by State College and University Representatives Set for Sept. 25

On Tuesday, Sept. 25, The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi (The Partnership) will bring representatives of several colleges, universities and community colleges to the campus of The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg to introduce The Partnership's Campus Anti-Hunger Team to The Eagle's Nest Food Pantry.

The tour will begin at approximately 10:30 a.m., and a meeting with all participants to discuss college campus hunger will take place at The Purple Parrot Café, located at 3904 Hardy Street. Media representatives are invited to both events. The team consists of members who are interested in setting up food banks on college campuses, individuals who work in the area of food security and educators and volunteers at food banks.

“Mississippi has a high rate of students in the free or reduced school lunch program. The need for assistance in securing food doesn't go away because they go to college,” said Sandra Shelson, executive director of The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi. “Hunger is a very real problem on the campuses in our state.”

The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi (The Partnership) was recently awarded an Emerging Advocacy Fund Grant from MAZON (https://mazon.org/). MAZON is a Jewish Response to Hunger and national advocacy organization working to end hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds in the United States and Israel. The Partnership has been working to secure college campuses around the state interested in setting up food banks.

“We are pleased that our efforts have secured relationships with Tougaloo College, Jackson State University, Millsaps College and Coahoma Community College, and all are working toward getting food banks set up and running on their campuses,” said Langston Moore, communications and community engagement director for The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi. “It is our hope that through our work with MAZON and with these new partners that we can reduce campus hunger in these areas of the state and others in years to come.”

Nationwide, almost one-fourth of college students experience hunger. Studies have shown that when college students experience hunger, it can cause them to not purchase a required textbook, as well as missing and dropping classes. Students who are not hungry are better on all levels of academic achievement, experience increased academic performance and reduced behavioral issues, and have better cognitive skills and attitudes, according to a plethora of studies including those conducted by the Centers for Disease Control.

“The Eagle's Nest, we feel, is a shining example of how a campus food pantry should operate. It is discreet and in a very inconspicuous location that deletes the shame factor that may exist in students who are hungry,” Moore continued. “It is our intention that our new partners will take ideas from this visit back to their campuses, and possibly duplicate these best practices employed at The Eagle's Nest.”

Learn more about the Eagles' Nest Food Pantry at https://www.usm.edu/social-work/eagles-nest-food-pantry.

About The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi
The mission of The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi is to provide educational information and awareness about the impact o tobacco on Mississippi and to improve the culture o health in Mississippi by applying lessons learned in tobacco prevention to other leading causes of death and disease impacting our State and Nation. For more information, visit http://www.healthy-miss.org/.