Support-A-Bull Pantry at the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus

The project 

With the coronavirus, many of our students have jobs that have been suspended due to closures or limited hours of operation and therefore are experiencing loss of income. To assist those who cannot afford groceries and other personal necessities, the Support-A-Bull Pantry at the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus is ramping up operations in anticipation of the increased need by our students.

Support-A-Bull Pantry is a USF Sarasota-Manatee campus resource that was a collaborative effort among USF Sarasota-Manatee campus Student Government, All Faiths Food Bank and the Food & Housing Insecurity Committee. A survey was conducted by Student Government regarding the student needs that were identified as food and housing insecure. From this recognition of need, the pantry was developed. Our pantry is designed to operate simply and confidentially. Students shop for groceries through an online portal and then pick up their items at a discreet campus location. A worker distributes the items in plain packaging.

As many USF Sarasota-Manatee campus students are married and supporting children, the pantry will be available to students' families as well.

Who We Are

The Food & Housing Insecurity Committee's mission is to create nutrition and housing security among our USF Sarasota-Manatee campus students through direct services and education. Primarily, we do this through our Support-A-Bull Pantry available to all currently enrolled students. The pantry was created in recognition of the following:

• 1 in 4 students face stress related to food insecurity
• 50 percent of working students are food insecure
• 57 percent of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligible students were not recipients of SNAP funding

USF believes no student should have to give up their educational pursuits because they have to choose between buying a textbook or buying groceries.

What Your Gifts Will Do

With your gift of any size today, we can increase the impact that the Support-A-Bull Pantry has on our students. Your gift makes it possible for us to acquire additional items for our pantry such as toothpaste, toothbrushes and other personal items.

If you are interested in being a part of our donation drive of non-perishable items, please click here for more information.

Spread the word

We are counting on your help!  Make an even bigger impact by sharing your support of this campaign by clicking on the social media tools at the top of the page.