Soon, all students living on campus no longer have to wait for pantry hours or worry about how they’ll access their next meal.

Emma Gerhardt, an intern at the Falcon Food Pantry, started an in-dorm bagged meal program for all students.

“So I developed this program to provide all students living on campus access to food bags,
whenever they are needed,” Gerhardt said. “With these food bags, it does not matter the time or day; the bags are always available to anyone who wants one. I think that is really important to eliminating food insecurity on BGSU’s [Bowling Green State University] campus, allowing all students, regardless of need, to have access to the resources of the Falcon Food Pantry.”

Gerhardt started this program last summer during her internship at the Falcon Food Pantry.

“I began developing this program… while interning over the summer at the pantry. We were able to deliver our first bags to Kreischer as a part of a pilot program in the beginning of November 2025,” Gerhardt said.

Gerhardt believes that none of this would have happened without Dr. Shannon Orr, the director of the Falcon Food Pantry.

“I could not have created and implemented this program without the director of the [Falcon] Food Pantry. I had an idea to put emergency food bags in the dorms on BGSU’s campus, and she let me have full control over contacting Residence Life, building the bags and creating the
promotional flyers,” Gerhardt said.

Gerhardt implanted this program in Kriescher and is expanding it soon with the help of a grant.

“We are still currently piloting the program in Kreischer; however, I am hopeful that we
will be able to expand the program to more dorms in the Fall 2026 semester,” Gerhardt said. “Dr. Orr also gave me the opportunity to write a grant through the City of Bowling Green for $1,000 to help fund the expansion of the program.”

Undergraduate Student Government (USG) plans to help Gerhardt and the Falcon Food Pantry with two primary initiatives.

“First, our Director of Civic Engagement and Service, Anna McRay, is working directly with Dr. Orr to assess operational needs, distribution logistics and inventory priorities. Second, USG is considering organizing a campus-wide food drive in late March or early April to increase pantry inventory,” Tiago Gaboardi, USG president, said.

USG and the Falcon Food Pantry are both going to promote this program to students.

“The Food Pantry maintains operational oversight and messaging related to services. USG can amplify awareness through its communication channels, including social media, tabling efforts, and senator outreach. The approach should be collaborative to avoid duplication and ensure consistent messaging,” Gaboardi said.

Gaboardi believes that students should care about this program for multiple reasons.

“Food insecurity directly affects academic performance, cognitive function, mental health and student retention. When food access is convenient and stigma-free, utilization increases,” Gaboardi said. “Placing food within dorm environments normalizes support, reduces transportation barriers and ensures students can access basic needs without administrative complexity.”