The Cochise Cupboard, a Cochise College student food pantry, received a $30,000 Rural Partners Cohort grant from the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. Cochise College is one of four
organizations that received the grant. This grant bolsters the pantry’s efforts in providing essential food supplies to students in need. It also aims to establish a cohort of leaders dedicated to food bank creation and implementation in Graham, Cochise, Greenlee, and Santa Cruz counties.
The Cochise Cupboard’s successful selection as a model program highlights its commitment to supporting wellness initiatives at the college. The program will run from July 2023 to July 2024.
Loren Gladwill, Cochise College’s student wellness manager, said the grant would help support a strong focus on wellness, one of the college’s four strategic initiative areas. “The grant not only helps students but allows us the opportunity to work together with other counties toward a common goal of addressing food insecurity,” said Gladwill.
The cohort plans to meet four times a year to learn from each other, work together, and explore and test updated client data collection methodologies to provide peer support to local food banks, benefiting everyone in our counties. The increased funding will enable the Cochise Cupboard to continue sourcing nutritious food options and other essentials contributing to students’ overall well-being.
“We are very excited to be awarded this grant,” added Abe Villarreal, Douglas Campus dean. “Now we are united in a cause that fosters community, wellness, collaboration and partnership.”
Food insecurity can affect a student’s physical and mental well-being, hindering academic success. By providing access to nutritious meals, the Cochise Cupboard addresses barriers to academic success and contributes to the long-term health and wellness of students in need.
For updates about the Cochise Cupboard, visit www.cochise.edu/cochise-cupboard.