About one in 10 New York households experiences food insecurity. It’s an issue that's received new publicity during the pandemic, as people lined up at food distribution sites.

In effort to combat the problem, the SUNY system has begun a new program to help enroll Educational Opportunity Center students into the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The system believes about 10,000 students statewide are eligible for the program, but haven’t registered.

Kristal Nash, a local student from Rensselaer, enrolled in SNAP. She admits the process can be overwhelming, but without it, she doesn’t know how her family would survive.

“My girlfriend and I, we live off of an SSI disability, and if we didn’t have SNAP, we wouldn’t be able to eat as healthy as we do,” says Nash.

Nash is working toward her GED in order to become a peer support specialist. She says receiving SNAP for her family, including her two children, has been one less thing to worry about as she works toward a new career.

“Often, we don’t get enough SNAP. So we have to worry about where that money’s coming from to supplement the rest of the month. Without it, we’d be lost all month long,” says Nash.

The SUNY program will allow students registering for EOC classes to check a box on their application to indicate they are interested in SNAP. The school then does the rest, including the background work required to enroll.

“I hope it can bring them peace of mind where they don’t have to worry about ‘how do I apply; where do I go; how am I going to eat.’ Maybe they don’t have to live off of ramen noodles and Spaghetti-Os all month long. Maybe they can actually eat fresh like we’ve had to do,” says Nash.