Research makes clear that food and housing insecurity are pervasive issues affecting our local community. Highline College is committed to supporting the basic needs of our students and recognizes the disproportionate negative impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a remote environment, where students are physically located away from campus, Highline is committed to providing assistance to students experiencing basic needs insecurity wherever they are. This commitment is grounded in the value of supporting the success of all Highline students. Access to these resources will remain in place, dependent upon local campus resource availability, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and primarily through remote/virtual instruction.
If you are experiencing homelessness, food insecurity, financial hardship or are in need of other basic needs support, please utilize the resources below.
The Highline College campus works in partnership with several community organizations to help meet students' basic needs. As such, and recognizing that not all students are currently located close to the Highline campus and may be located closer to community-based organizations that provide basic needs support, students are encouraged to visit Support Center Website. https://supportcenter.highline.edu/community-partners/.
Dial 211
By simply dialing 211, you can be referred, and sometimes connected, to appropriate agencies and community organizations.
211 works a bit like 911. Calls to 211 are routed by the local telephone company to a local or regional calling center. The 211 center’s referral specialists receive requests from callers, access databases of resources available from private and public health and human service agencies, match the callers’ needs to available resources, and link or refer them directly to an agency or organization that can help.
Types of Referrals Offered by 211
Basic Human Needs Resources– including food and clothing banks, shelters, rent assistance, and utility assistance.
Physical and Mental Health Resources– including health insurance programs, Medicaid and Medicare, maternal health resources, health insurance programs for children, medical information lines, crisis intervention services, support groups, counseling, and drug and alcohol intervention and rehabilitation.
Work Support– including financial assistance, job training, transportation assistance and education programs.
Access to Services in Non-English Languages- including language translation and interpretation services to help non-English-speaking people find public resources (Foreign language services vary by location.)
Support for Older Americans and Persons with Disabilities– including adult day care, community meals, respite care, home health care, transportation and homemaker services.
Children, Youth and Family Support– including child care, after-school programs, educational programs for low-income families, family resource centers, summer camps and recreation programs, mentoring, tutoring and protective services.
Suicide Prevention– referral to suicide prevention help organizations. Callers can also dial the following National Suicide Prevention Hotline numbers which are operated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:
Students can also find support in the local community through going to FindHelp.orgLinks to an external site.. This free website is a reliable, holistic, and user-friendly system designed to help individuals get connections to food, housing, transportation, and other resources.
The fundamental, minimum requirements necessary for a decent standard of life and physical, mental, and social well-being. In the context of this report, we refer primarily to food and housing, but basic needs may also include issues such as safety and security, sanitation, access to clean water, and clothing.
Food Insecurity
The state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. ‘Anxiety over food access’ is considered marginal food insecurity while outright ‘hunger’ and ‘not eating for an entire day due to lack of resources for food’ is a more extreme manifestation. “Low” and “very low” food security levels are defined as “food insecurity” by the USDA, and “marginal” and “high” food security levels are not typically considered “food insecurity”. The word ‘hunger’ is sometimes used colloquially to describe food insecurity.
Housing Insecurity
Variably defined as having difficulty paying rent, having frequent moves, living in overcrowded conditions, or doubling up with friends and relatives. In the college context, instability may take the form of frequent moving of residence due to lack of resources or eviction, or temporary or chronic couch surfing. Homelessness refers to lack of a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, characterized by living in motels, hotels, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations or living in a car or other location not designed for being a residence.
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