Greensboro College wins Grand Prize of the 2023 NC Collegiate Hunger Challenge

Greensboro College was selected as the Grand Prize winner in the 2023 NC Collegiate Hunger Challenge, a competition among other universities and colleges in North Carolina designed to address food insecurity on college campuses and to increase efforts toward hunger relief in higher education. With a prize of $10,000, Greensboro College will receive winnings to support food insecurity initiatives.

During the Fall 2023 semester, Greensboro College competed against 12 other schools in the challenge, sponsored by Food Lion Feeds and North Carolina Campus Engagement; the first year of the challenge occurred during the 2018-2019 academic year.

In the challenge, North Carolina colleges and universities were divided into sectors of community college, four-year public, and four-year private; Greensboro College competed in the four-year private category.

Results were measured by points that were awarded by the number of events held, check-in meeting attendance, and bonus points, including most creative event and most social media posts.

Throughout the fall semester, two students, Luke Butner (of Kernersville) and Xypher Pino (of Clemmons), served as Hunger Ambassadors for the campus and were helped by GC alum, Tyler Smith ’22. The group, mentored by the Rev. Dr. Robert Brewer, campus chaplain and professor of religion, spearheaded the campaign for Greensboro College, organizing their campaign into the student group, the Pride Pantry.

“Working with this team has been an incredible experience,” said Brewer. “Their energy, compassion, and dedication to making a difference on campus was infectious and they continue to inspire me in my own work. I could not be prouder of them.”

As colleges and universities were competing against each other, schools were required to host and document several activities centered on food insecurity and raising awareness of the public health concern.

The Pride Pantry held on-campus food drives, information sessions, interactive exercises, and a dance, and collaborated with a local Food Lion for a donation drive.

GC earned the Most Creative Event Bonus by hosting an Art Against Hunger Day + Pottery Drive, where students engaged in multiple arts-based activities, all themed around hunger awareness in collaboration with Greensboro College’s Art Department, while also hosting a pottery sale in exchange for canned goods. Greensboro College was selected as the winner of the Social Media Bonus by posting the most (854 posts) since the start of the challenge.

With their winnings, the Pride Pantry and the college will look into adding resources on its campus for students facing food insecurity and look into means to strengthen the resources they already have on its grounds. Food Lion will present the check to Greensboro College at the NC Campus Engagement Presidents Forum on February 14, 2024.

“This money will go a long way on our campus to help combat food insecurity,” said Brewer. “We will use it to stock our pantries around campus with toiletries, hygiene products, and much-needed nonperishable food items.”

Greensboro College provides a liberal arts education grounded in the traditions of the United Methodist Church and fosters the intellectual, social, and, spiritual development of all students while supporting their individual needs. Founded in 1838 and located in downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,000 students from 29 states and territories, the District of Columbia, and seven foreign countries in its undergraduate liberal arts program and six master’s degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features a 19-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities. Learn more at greensboro.edu. Think critically. Act justly. Live faithfully.