Abstract
Introduction:College students face high food insecurity rates yet also face various barriers to accessing CalFresh. Family legal status may be one of these barriers but has not been extensively studied. Although children of immigrants report higher food insecurity and lower CalFresh participation than children of US-born parents, it is unclear how family legal status affects CalFresh use and food insecurity during adulthood.
Methods:
This study explores how family legal status affects food insecurity and CalFresh use among college students from mixed-status families (MSF). Data was collected at a public university using an anonymous, cross-sectional, mixed-methods survey (n=108). Differences between students from MSF and non-MSF were assessed using Chi-square tests of independence while qualitative answers were analyzed for themes.
Results:
Students from MSF were 35.2% of the sample. Food insecurity was very prevalent among both MSF and non-MSF students (55.3% vs. 47.1%; Χ2(1, N=108) =0.650, p=.420), and CalFresh participation was low (23.7% vs. 23.2%; Χ2(1, N=107) =0.003, p=.954); however, differences were not statistically significant. Qualitative analysis indicated that 50% of students currently in MSF described family legal status as negatively impacting CalFresh use because of concerns for family members and security of personal information.
Conclusion:
Family legal status creates unique concerns about CalFresh among students from MSF, but these concerns did not affect CalFresh participation among this sample, though it is unclear why. Larger studies and in-depth qualitative interviews are needed to better understand the impact of family legal status.