Friday, October 14, 2022
Charlotte Lenkaitis

The Global Health Studies Program congratulates Charlotte Lenkaitis (BS ’21) on her publication in the Spring ’22 issue of the Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law & Policy!

Written with coauthors Dr. Katharine M. Broton and fellow University of Iowa grad Sarah Henry, Lenkaitis's article draws in part on her experience as Executive Director of the Food Pantry at Iowa student food bank. The article examines the efficacy of student food bank programs and makes recommendations for how to more fully address food insecurity on university campuses.

The article abstract is below:

Given growing awareness of and actions to address food insecurity challenges in higher education, this paper is a response to the Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law and Policy 2022 Symposium call to examine universities as producers, managers, and opponents of poverty. Bringing together the unique perspectives of a faculty scholar and two recent undergraduates who worked on the frontlines to end hunger on campus, we argue that student-led food pantries are a critical way in which universities manage poverty on campus, but they are unable to oppose or eliminate food insecurity alone. As such, we examine the strengths and challenges of a student-led campus food pantry model, providing insights into best practices and models for university engagement. We conclude with a call for universities and policymakers to match students’ actions for a better tomorrow where experiences of hunger and food insecurity no longer impede students’ educational goals, so that we can go from merely managing poverty to opposing it, once and for all.

To read the full article, click here.