Back row: Fred Petersburg, Rakiah Bonjour, Gary Herrig, Terri Ewers, Molly Knoll
Front row: Molli Koehler, Brittani Sanchez, Jen Christensen, Jessica Lutz
Many of the students attending NIACC are from lower-income households in north Iowa and southern Minnesota. More than 80 percent of the 3,100 full-time students are eligible for some kind of financial assistance. The most common reason cited for dropping out of NIACC before completing a degree is lack of resources, said Terri Ewers, vice president of Student Development and Success, with NIACC.
“Sometimes, the ability to stay comes down to having enough to eat and we do have students on campus who go hungry,” Ewers said.
The pantry will be small enough to fit in a storage closet in the Students Services offices. But its impact will be large, Ewers said: “We believe that meeting this (food) need will be one more way the college can have a positive impact on retention and graduation rates.”
Modeled after Pamela’s Pantry at the Des Moines Area Community College, the NIACC pantry will be stocked with mostly grab-and-go food selections, such as fruit and vegetable juices, granola bars, soup and macaroni and cheese. Designated Student Services staff members will have access to the pantry, with faculty members and counselors helping to identify which students are in need of help.
“We understand the value of quality, nutritious food,” said Ron Eichmeier, vice president of FCSAmerica’s Mason City office. “It is gratifying to help fund a program that could keep students in school and improve their future by making healthy food more accessible.”
The NIACC Foundation is one of 36 organizations to receive a Working Here Fund grant in the fourth quarter of 2014. FCSAmerica awarded $58,450 during the latest grant cycle ending December 31, 2014.
The NIACC Foundation plans to use the Working Here Fund grant to stock shelves with basic food supplies to make the pantry operational. Food drives will provide ongoing support.
Farm Credit Services of America is a customer-owned financial cooperative proud to finance the growth of rural America, including the special needs of young and beginning producers. With more than $22 billion in assets and $4 billion in members’ equity, FCSAmerica is one of the region’s leading providers of credit and insurance services to farmers, ranchers, agribusiness and rural residents in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.
