There is a serious challenge for a great number of college students these days and it has nothing to do with worrying about the latest grade on an exam – but rather questioning where their next meal is coming from. “It is not OK for half of our students to be hungry,” said Dr. Pam Eddinger, president of Bunker Hill Community College. Eddinger said as many 55% of the nearly 18,000 students enrolled at Bunker Hill qualify as food insecure. This means in the last 30 days, they didn’t have enough to eat or have access to the right kinds of food or had a very difficult decision to make. “Three-quarters of our students are adults. Three out of five have children. So, they’re probably deciding whether the children are going to eat. You know children always eat first,” Eddinger said. To combat that challenge head-on, Bunker Hill resorted to opening up its very own food pantry on campus. “We are in the D.I.S.H.— which stands for Delivery Information Assessment and Health,” said Molly Hansen, D.I.S.H. food pantry coordinator. Hanson was brought in to set up and coordinate this critical resource two years ago. “The need has grown exponentially since the pandemic has started,” Hanson said. Hanson said since they opened, of the 80,000 pounds of food donated to D.I.S.H., 75,000 has been distributed to both students and staff. A majority has been provided by the Greater Boston Food Bank. “We do work with a lot of really great food recovery partners in the Boston area but having the Greater Boston Food Bank provide the reliable inventory every month allows students to be able to plan ahead for their meals,” Hanson said. Planning ahead and preparing students for a better future is part of the goal of higher education. But when it comes to feeding the body as well as the mind, that can complicate that end goal. The way Eddinger sees it, you can’t food pantry your way out of hunger. “It’s a shame and I think it is to the shame of our public policy that the Greater Boston Food Bank and our food bank and the work we do is so vibrant. Because it should be,” she said. Food insecurity is not just a challenge for Bunker Hill Community College. In Massachusetts, all 29 public institutions of higher learning, which includes 15 community colleges, nine state universities and the University of Massachusetts campuses, all have either food pantries or some form of assisted food access for students who are hungry.