“A Celebration of Strength, Success & Womanhood”
A Women’s Tea was held in Celebration of Women’s History Month by the ENMU-Ruidoso Campus Hunger Task Force Tuesday, March 25. The theme was “A Celebration of Strength, Success & Womanhood.” Forty women attended the event including students, staff and members of the community. They enjoyed a delicious meal that included chicken salad, a variety of quiches, cucumber bites and more that was prepared by Science Department Chair Shelly Elfelt and her Nutrition Students Shanay Scott-Arbuckle, Anna Hair and Fernanda Valdez Ayala; Food Security Specialist and Student Olivia Withrow and Community Member Cecile Kinnan. Olivia gave a presentation about the Food Security Grant that the College received, the new Resource Room and the impact women have on the food industry. Additionally, the guests toured the Resource Room and learned about what the College is doing to create a food secure campus.
Flower arrangements were donated by Albertons Market and Blossoms Floral Design. The winners of the flower arrangements were Patsy Neely Gardner of Ruidoso and Susan Jimenez of Hondo.
The College received the largest food security grant in the state from the New Mexico Department of Higher Education in the amount of $235,000 to provide programs and activities for the campus community. From a basic needs survey two years ago, it was found that 76 percent of the college students are food insecure
The ENMU-Ruidoso Campus Connections community development service program aims to create a climate of food security on campus through several systemic avenues: education and training, resource coordination, community partnerships and physical space for students, staff, and faculty to access food and prepare meals.
Through this program the Community Development Department creates “Campus Connections:” a community kitchen where students can access fresh food and prepare nutritious meals. With high rates of both food and housing insecurity in the college service area, providing a space where students can prepare food is critical for sustainably serving Ruidoso and the surrounding community.
Additionally, the college hosts weekly food preparation and nutrition classes. The classes focus on high-nutrition, low-cost meals and includes ingredients with weekly food distribution. To increase program awareness, reduce stigma and increase student accessibility to basic needs, the campus provides area resources to students along with developing a campus hunger task force and area partnerships with active groups including local food pantries and community gardens.
Through research collaboration with the New Mexico State-wide Basic Needs Projects, ENMU-Ruidoso students were found to experience food and housing insecurity at higher levels than the average New Mexico college student.
- 76% of Ruidoso students experience some level of food insecurity in the last 12 months, compared to 67% of the state student population.
- The intersection between food and housing insecurity is significant in fact, 64% of Ruidoso Campus respondents faced both food and housing insecurity concurrently, compared to 44% of average respondents of New Mexico colleges.
- Only 5% of the campus community experienced food insecurity with secure housing. Given this association, establishing space on campus for students to prepare and cook food is critical for program success.
The Ruidoso Campus Connections programming is spearheaded by Community Development and Grants Director Nicole DeLorenzo and Chief External Affairs Officer Robin DeMott.
