A survey conducted by Baylor College of Medicine during the pandemic found that several students in the four schools indicated they were food insecure.

The Grocery Resource at Baylor (The GRAB) opened in August 2022 with shelf-stable food items, including canned foods, breakfast options and ingredients for multiple meals per week. Once enrolled, students who experience food insecurity are able to take a full bag each week from the GRAB to supplement their own pantries.

The Grocery Resource at Baylor opened in August 2022 to supplement the pantries of food-insecure students and trainees.

Bags are pre-filled by Baylor volunteers with canned meat, fruit and vegetables, beans, soups, pasta, rice and several snack options for students on the go. Vegetarian items are offered along with foods that meet other dietary needs.

In its first year, the free resource assisted nearly 100 students and provided 650 bags of food between August ‘22 and June ‘23. So far this year, 121 students have enrolled and 233 bags have been picked up since Aug. 10, said Jose “Alex” Alanis, community outreach associate who runs the GRAB and helped launch the resource.

After the first year of operation, some changes were made to the GRAB to enhance the students’ experience, like allowing them to customize their food items.

“After speaking with a few people who were enrolled last year who have come back, a lot of them are really happy with the new changes we’ve made and how it’s improved,” Alanis said. “They enjoy the variety of items and the new system to request food.”

Following an initial donation from Baylor’s President Circle fund, the GRAB is mainly funded by donations from the Baylor community and beyond. Each bag is filled with items that would cost $30-$40 at a grocery store.

Students aren’t required to pick up food every week. Alanis emails each GRAB member on Monday with a form so they may customize their order for the week. Members have designated pickup times and assigned numbers to aid discretion.

“It was set up to be a resource that students could access discreetly, and I think the response is positive,” said Dr. Carolyn Smith, dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and professor of molecular and cellular biology, said. “People are saying it’s great we have a resource like this to support our students.”

Graduate school faculty have said they are pleased Baylor is helping ease financial burdens for students and their families who may not have had sufficient food resources, Smith added. The average age of graduate school matriculation for the Ph.D. programs at Baylor is 25, and many students have families and may be supporting children.

“The average time to finish a Ph.D. is six years” Smith said. “That combined with family responsibilities, mean that having access to a food pantry can make the difference between staying or leaving an educational program.”

The GRAB collaborates with organizations like the American Heart Association and UTHealth’s food pantry, The Cupboard, to trade healthy ideas and items. The American Heart Association provides a map to other food pantries in the Houston area, a good resource during the holidays when the GRAB is closed.

Jose “Alex” Alanis, community outreach associate in the Office of Communications and Community Outreach.

When the GRAB was first established, the Cupboard’s organizers at UTHealth helped Alanis learn how to run a food pantry with tips, advice and some initial food donations. Last year, the Cupboard delivered a large quantity of menstrual pads that have been available to students on an as-needed basis.

Dr. Gordon Schutze, vice dean of the School of Medicine and professor of pediatrics, volunteers at the GRAB by organizing bags and replenishing shelves. He understands that many medical students are “just barely getting by.”

“With paying for tuition and food, they may be married, they may not come from families that can help support them,” Schutze said. “Most people can’t work a second job during the first year because they’re studying. Afterward, you’re in clinic, so you definitely can’t.”

Putting learners and their needs first should be the goal of any academic institution, he said. That way, Baylor can continue developing its pipeline of physicians, scientists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, graduate students and researchers.

The GRAB is important to Smith because she knows students may come from disadvantaged backgrounds. Many degree programs require years of school and sacrifice.

“To be able to help alleviate or ease the burden of the hard work required to attain their educational goals is really great and important,” Smith said. “It helps us make sure people can continue to be in programs to become scientists, doctors and health professionals.”

Donate to the GRAB.

By Julie Garcia