Lusharon Wiley talks about how Argo Pantry supplies students with food and daily necessities.

Pensacola’s UWF was the sixth university in the state to open a food pantry on campus. The others are the University of Central Florida, Florida State, Florida Gulf Coast, University of North Florida, and the University of South Florida.

Wiley notes that college students, who are considered part of the household until they are 26, are not typically eligible for the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, or food stamps.

At UWF, 44 percent of the 10,156-member student body attends on Pell grants, a program that helps undergraduates from low-income families. Of the six state universities with food pantries, none has a higher percentage of Pell Grant recipients than UWF.

VISIT: Argo Pantry

Argo Pantry

The purpose of the Argo Pantry is to provide healthy food to currently enrolled UWF students who are in need of emergency assistance. Our mission is to establish and sustain a campus food pantry that will fulfill the basic requirements of students who are in need.

Background

The idea for the food pantry grew out of a conversation between Dr. Keya Wiggins, UWF Psychologist with Counseling and Psychological Services, and Dr. Lusharon Wiley, Director of Case Management Services in the Dean of Students office. Their shared concern and interactions with students had revealed a growing number of students who did not have adequate food. The idea was shared with the AVP/Dean of Students who supported the idea. He had established a food pantry at a prior institution.