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Andréa Halpin serves as the University Director for Student Wellness and Well-Being at Indiana University, where she leads systemwide initiatives that advance holistic student wellness and address basic needs across IU’s nine campuses. She oversees efforts such as the Feed IU initiative, which strengthens campus food pantry infrastructure and expands sustainable solutions to student food insecurity. Prior to this role, Halpin served as Dean of Students where she led initiatives focused on student engagement, belonging, and wellbeing. With more than a decade of experience in higher education, her work centers on creating data-informed, student-centered strategies that help students thrive.
Student food insecurity is a growing reality across higher education, affecting student wellbeing, persistence, and academic success. According to Indiana University’s 2023 Financial Wellness Survey, 37% of students experienced food insecurity and 58% reported basic-needs insecurity during their college experience.
At Indiana University, what began as a collection of campus pantry efforts has evolved into Feed IU — a coordinated, university-wide initiative supporting students across eight campuses. Central to that growth has been early philanthropic leadership from a committed group of donors, including Milt Stewart (IU ’68, ’71) and Julie Christopher (IU ’94), whose vision and generosity helped transform a bold idea into a growing movement of student support.
Their paths into student food insecurity work began in different but deeply personal ways: Milt described touring IU campuses to learn more about pantry efforts, while Julie traced her commitment back to years of involvement and later leadership in a community meal program at her local church from a young age. Their early support came at a moment when student needs were visible, but solutions were fragmented. Rather than funding a single pantry they encouraged a broader approach — one built for scale, dignity, and long-term impact.
From the beginning, Feed IU was designed as a connected infrastructure that could ensure consistent access, shared standards, and measurable outcomes across campuses. Early priorities included reducing stigma, simplifying student access, and building operational consistency through management tools including PantrySoft. Julie shared, “In many cases, hunger is not a short-term problem but rather ongoing. We may be able to solve for one student, but there’s going to be another…making the choice between rent or food,” highlighting the need for a foundation grounded in both credibility and long-term sustainability.
Philanthropy played a catalytic role in moving the work from awareness to action. Rather than treating food access as charity, donor support positioned it as student success infrastructure. Milt emphasized the importance of connecting with donors who share a passion for addressing food insecurity, especially those who may have faced challenges as students and who recognize the strong connection between nutrition and academic success.
Over the past year, Feed IU has accelerated its university wide progress. The initiative now connects pantry leaders across eight campuses, supports shared technology for pantry management and reporting, and aligns food access efforts with broader student success strategies. Campus partnerships have expanded, student utilization has increased, and collaboration with larger organizations like Swipe Out Hunger has strengthened knowledge-sharing and visibility. Among the most meaningful milestones for the donors has been the access to reliable student usage data made possible through successful software implementation. As Julie noted, “The data is what drives this [initiative] in terms of being able to show meaningful results and outcomes to then raise more funds and help more students.”
Partnerships remain central to the model’s success. Collaboration among donors, campus leaders, frontline staff, and community partners has enabled Feed IU to grow in both reach and effectiveness. Both donors highlighted that strong partnerships help surface best practices, emerging trends, and proven approaches in addressing food insecurity, and they noted that expanding these partnerships, especially across IU’s more than 800,000 alumni, will be critical to future growth.
For institutions looking to address student food insecurity, Feed IU offers a practical framework: start with student data and lived experience, build cross-campus coalitions early, invest in infrastructure — not just supplies — and design for consistency and dignity. Engage donors around measurable student success outcomes, pilot thoughtfully, and scale what works. Both Julie and Milt emphasized that progress also depends on people — identifying passionate champions who will advocate, raise awareness, and keep the issue visible with senior leaders, advisory boards, and potential donors. As they noted, passion is often what sparks broader commitment and sustained support.
Looking ahead, the long-term vision is clear: normalize support, reduce stigma, and ensure that basic needs access is embedded in how universities define student success. As one donor shared, “When students’ basic needs are met, they are far better positioned to succeed. Addressing hunger isn’t extra support — it’s foundational to student success.” A legacy measured not just in meals provided, but in students empowered to persist and thrive.
