SAN DIEGO—The COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the housing crisis in San Diego, has created a larger demand for basic needs resources at campuses all over the area.
Since the pandemic outbreak, college students have faced an unprecedented increase in housing and food insecurity. As a result, basic needs resources offered by universities are being utilized more and their services expanding. Such resource centers had to adapt quickly at the onset of the pandemic.
One example is San Diego State University. At SDSU, the main director of basic needs programs is the Economic Crisis Response Team. The team assesses individual students’ needs and provides resources and support. This varies from their Grocery Assistance Program, to their Rapid Re-Housing Program.
ECRT Resource Coordination Assistant Dustin Adkins noted many changes to the program due to COVID-19.
“We expanded from a team of one to five. We also expanded many of our resources... We know there is that high need and that it's increasing," Adkins said. Adkins also explained that the number of ECRT student cases rose at least 426% in the 2019-2020 school year, compared to 2018-2019.
Basic needs programs are present in both public and private universities. The University of San Diego’s main program is the Urgent Challenges Collective. The University of California, San Diego, has the Hub, California State University, San Marcos, has the Cougar Care Network.
The demand is present in community colleges as well.
The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice reported that 68% of students in the San Diego Community College District experienced some form of basic needs in 2020. They also reported that those students were more likely to experience any basic needs insecurity compared to students at two-year colleges in the United States.
All of these programs have implemented virtual options and expanded resources with the help of multiple Cal Grants and federal funding—showing the demand is prevalent and valid.
A sign notifying students of the Basic Needs Resource Fair in the Conrad Prebys Aztec Student Union at San Diego State University.
The Aztec Food Pantry on the second floor of the Conrad Prebys Aztec Student Union at SDSU. The Food Pantry is open three days a week, for four hours a day.
The Basic Needs Resource fair at San Diego State University, hosted by the school's Economic Crisis Response Team for their "Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week." The booths notified students of various resources at the school and how to get involved.
The Hub Resource Center at University of California, San Diego provides basic needs resources to students at the university.
While COVID-19 has created financial instability for many students, another factor that has exacerbated this situation is the housing crisis in San Diego, according to experts.
When asked what else could be done to improve the basic needs insecurity for college students, CSUSM Care Manager Bonnie Campbell thought of housing right away. “More affordable housing,” she said. “Students who have never experienced housing insecurity are trying to move back to San Diego after being home. Trying to afford a place is crazy.”
A study conducted by the National Real Estate Investor found that, in 2018, 55% of US university students lived in other types of rental housing and 23% lived in “purpose-build, off campus housing.” Only 22% of university students in the U.S. lived on-campus.
A factor contributing to students living off campus is the decrease in on-campus housing availability, implemented as a safety measure for COVID-19.
In 2020, the Association of College and University Housing Officers conducted a survey and found that 70% of student housing officials were intending to reduce bed counts in their on-campus housing facilities, in order to decrease the density of student housing.
According to The San Diego Union Tribune, more than 3,000 UCSD students were on the waitlist for on-campus housing. Those students, not having a stable housing situation, were forced to turn to expensive off-campus housing options.
This housing crisis contributes to the basic needs insecurities in San Diego campuses, putting financial strain on many students. According to the Education Data Initiative, California spends the most on financial aid dollars compared to any other state in 2021, at over $2 billion.
Hafsa Kaka, the new director of the Homeless Strategies and Solutions Department for the City of San Diego, expressed her determination to assist in the housing crisis.
At a panel run by University of San Diego’s Urgent Challenges Collective, she explained, “We always look at affordable housing as the outcome--housing first is the model that the city is aligned with.”
When asked about best practices regarding homelessness, Kaka stressed not only the importance of affordable housing, but also creating “permanent support of housing.”
The City of San Diego and the State of California have issued many measures, such as grants and relief packages to help combat the housing crisis and basic needs insecurities.
CSUSM Case Management Specialist Ericka Wells emphasized the importance of solving these issues by providing more assistance and affordable housing. “ (Students) wouldn’t have to worry about being able to afford rent, and they could focus on their studies if they had a place that was affordable,” Wells said.