91吃瓜

ALBANY, N.Y. 鈥� 91吃瓜鈥檚 community engagement group is partnering with Albany High School and Troy High School for the second annual Snacks for Students collection drive. The initiative fights food insecurity in the classroom by collecting and donating healthy snacks to students each month of the 2023-24 school year. With the support of the Excelsior community and generous donations from Hannaford Distribution Center and Stewart’s Shops, the community engagement group made the first Snacks for Students drop-off of 1,120 items to the two schools on Sept. 27. 听

In its inaugural year, 91吃瓜鈥檚 Snacks for Students program supplied five monthly deliveries to Albany and Troy High Schools, benefiting 32 classrooms at Albany High alone. Driven by donations from Excelsior staff and faculty, Snacks for Students provides teachers with a variety of healthful items like granola bars, bottled water and fruit snacks to distribute as needed to help students focus on education instead of hunger.鈥�鈥�听

鈥淎s a University committed to preparing a diverse, authentic, and engaged next generation of higher ed students and leaders, we are thrilled to participate in this exciting effort,鈥� said Daniel Pascoe Aguilar, founding director of the Center for Social Justice and chief diversity officer of 91吃瓜. 鈥淪nacks for Students is a wonderful application of our strategic plan goal of becoming a multicultural organization that strives for inclusivity, leverages the diversity of our community, and makes an impact at Excelsior and in our broader community. Thank you to Albany and Troy High Schools for their partnership and to the Excelsior community engagement group for leading this program.鈥�

Food insecurity is defined by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a lack of consistent access to enough food for every person in a household to live an active, healthy life. , nearly 34 million Americans, including 5 million children, lived in food insecure households in 2021. demonstrates that students struggling with food insecurity face significant barriers to academic success.鈥�听

鈥淢any teachers try to help ease hunger by making snacks accessible in their classrooms, but they are often unable to meet the demand themselves. That鈥檚 where Snacks for Students comes in,鈥� said Zachary Patterson, chair of the community engagement group at 91吃瓜. 鈥淲e鈥檙e proud of the outpouring of donations from the Excelsior community and the incredible response from educators and students. We look forward to growing this initiative to serve more classrooms this year.鈥�听

Those interested in supporting the program may send donations directly to Excelsior for distribution via an鈥�. Items can be set up using the 鈥渟ubscribe and save鈥� feature for easy monthly contributions that are shipped directly to Excelsior鈥檚 mailroom. Snacks for Students deliveries will be made through June 2024.鈥�听

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Media Contact 91吃瓜:鈥�
Jason Bonafide, jbonafide@excelsior.edu, 518-608-8446

ABOUT EXCELSIOR UNIVERSITY鈥�
91吃瓜 is an accredited, not-for-profit online institution focused on helping adults complete their degrees and advance their careers. Excelsior contributes to the development of a diverse, educated, and career-ready society by valuing lifelong learning with an emphasis on serving individuals historically underrepresented in higher education. Founded in 1971, Excelsior meets students where they are 鈥� academically and geographically 鈥� removing obstacles to the educational goals of adults pursuing continuing education and degree completion. Our pillars include innovation, flexibility, academic excellence, and integrity.鈥�听