Bridging the gap
State food assistance aiding more students, residents purchasing groceries
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When Brandon White steps up to the register in the grocery store, he wishes he could just pay with cash, instead of a bright-orange food stamps card.
“People associate that with (someone) not being able to stand on their own two feet,” said White, a technology systems management senior. “It’s nothing against my pride. I know I can take care of myself, but the government is offering to help out college students like myself.”
The Michigan Bridge Card is a debit-like card that can be used to make food purchases at select convenience and grocery stores in the state. The state Department of Human Services, or DHS, issues the cards as part of its food-assistance program.
White is one of many college students who uses the Bridge Card to help ease some of the financial burdens of college.
As of April, 16.9 percent of individuals ages 18-25 received government assistance through the Bridge Card program.
The Bridge Card
The Bridge Card can be used only to make food purchases, with food stamps disbursed electronically once a month. The amount of assistance an individual or family receives varies based on needs, assets and expenses.
Beginning Oct. 1, a single person can receive no more than $172 per month. The minimum amount will be $14, according to DHS.
The Bridge Card replaced food-coupon booklets in 2000. The card allows the user more freedom to manage his or her money and eliminates the hassle of carrying a booklet.
The Bridge Card has helped eliminate some of the stigma associated with using government assistance, DHS spokesperson Colleen Steinman said — but many people still believe individuals and families who use the food assistance program are lazy and unmotivated.
“In fact, nearly one-third of all households that receive food assistance are working and reporting income,” Steinman said. “They simply don’t make enough money to pay all the bills.”
DHS uses an application process to determine eligibility, Steinman said. It can take up to 30 days to process but there is an emergency category for those who need it.
“We look at income, expenses, assets and other pertinent information and compare them against the specific program’s rules and policies,” Steinman said.
The application can be found online, at www.michigan.gov/dhs, or at the Ingham County DHS office, 5303 S. Cedar St. in Lansing.
Students and food assistance
In July, the DHS reported that 18 percent of all Michigan residents were receiving some form of assistance.
The state’s Food Assistance Program also set a record in July, with assistance being given to 604,863 households — representing 1,287,884 individuals.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s a student or a working adult or a senior — we want everyone who qualifies for food assistance to have it,” Steinman said. “No one should go hungry, and this is an important program that helps people supplement their nutritional needs.”
In the past five years, the number of Michigan households receiving food stamps has increased 53 percent, according to a report by WSYM Fox 47 in Lansing.
“College students need to fuel their bodies, so their brains work better — and they can use education to pull themselves out of poverty and obtain the knowledge and training they need to become successful, self-sufficient adults,” Steinman said.
White said he has used government assistance for six months.
Because he’s a student, White’s work hours were limited to 20 hours per week, with most of his income being divided between rent and other bills.
“A lot of people forget that earning a degree is a full-time job in itself — and you don’t get paid for it,” he said. “Once you’re out of the dorms, the cost of food is coming out of your pockets.”
This reality spurred White to apply for food assistance. He was approved to receive the equivalent of $120 per month.
“At first I thought it was too much, but then I got to shopping and saw how fast things add up,” White said. “I spent the whole thing in one trip to the grocery store and it lasted for about a month.”
Applicants are certified for a period of one to 12 months. At the end of that period, their application is reviewed to see if their financial status has changed.
Since White worked more hours during the summer, the amount of food stamps he received was reduced to $16 monthly. He said he’s in the process of reapplying to raise his benefits.
“I can’t say I wasn’t upset but I can understand I wasn’t taking classes and I didn’t have a lot of responsibilities to worry about,” White said. “(DHS) depends on you to do some of it yourself.”
Shopping healthy
White said the Bridge Card pushes life skills and has made him a wiser shopper.
“It encouraged me to get away from fast foods — and honestly, I’ve never cooked as much as I did until I got (a card),” he said.
Michigan’s Food Stamp and Nutrition Education Program, based at MSU, can help those who haven’t learned how to shop for healthy foods by using the Bridge Card. The program is available in all 83 counties of Michigan.
The program was started with the goal of providing nutritional education to food stamp recipients, MSU program leader Karen Martin said.
Participants also learn how to stretch their food dollars, make healthy choices while shopping and learn the importance of physical activity, Martin said.
Last year, the program serviced 5,072 adults.
To get involved, students can visit Ingham County MSU Extension office, 5303 South Cedar St., in Lansing. Staff can meet with students in their home or with friends and neighbors.
“I would encourage (students) to get involved with the program because they will have research-based information to help them make informed food and physical activity choices that will promote their health and prevent the onset of disease,” Martin said.
“Most students don’t have a lot of money — and in this program they can learn how to make those choices without spending a lot of money.”
Commentary
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Juan
(09/18/08 11:30pm)Report
Let me get this right…I worked as an attorney full time while getting my MBA, but if someone would rather not work while they go to school, then they can get food assistance that I help pay for. WTF.
School is a choice. If you can’t afford it, get a job at least part-time. Please don’t ask those of us who work to subsidize your desire not to. That’s not the decent thing to do. Save the food stamps for people who are actually in need.
Fredrik
(09/19/08 12:02am)Report
Juan you’re just bitter that you didn’t take advantage of it! Getting food stamps while in college is so you don’t have the strain of a job as a full-time student! Going to school isn’t about paying for it, it’s about learning. Besides, who’s to say that there isn’t enough food stamp money allocated for whoever applies/needs them (and the application for the bridge card determines your level of need).
Steve
(09/19/08 7:16am)Report
“Going to school isn’t about paying for it, it’s about learning.”
Is that supposed to be some kind of joke? I work part-time and I am in medical school. Last spring I was taking 26 credit hours of graduate-level courses, and some how I still managed to work. You chose to go to college. If you can’t cut it financially, then cut back your class load and work half of the week. There are ways to do it with good time management and proper use of LOANS. Stop mooching off the people that actually have a job. Many people from poor backgrounds make it through college without having to draw from the welfare system.
Juan
(09/19/08 7:19am)Report
Fredrik:
I guess you miss the point. I’m all for helping out those who are desperately in need, struggling to raise kids in the face of job losses or some such thing. But someone who finds it more convenient to be a full-time student rather than to work? Well, if we’re talking about them getting aid from a charity, that’s one thing. But the food stamp program is coerced charity through taxation, “charity at the barrel of a gun”, so to speak. I happen to resent being coerced to subsidize Mr. White’s lifestyle choices, as do a great many grown-ups who work, pay taxes, and have to prioritize in their own lives.
I agree that school is about learning. No serious question there. But what kind of man says “I feel like learning, and I’m going to make everybody else pay for my learning because I don’t happen to want to support myself?”
Shall we pay for gas for Mr. White’s car, too? Perhaps front him some beer money? And heck, why not give him an account at Meridian Mall so he can buy clothes and gifts and home furnishings while we’re at it.
I guess I just worry that if we move the line to include food assistance, those web of things justified by feelings of entitlement is just going to keep subsuming more incidents of life; before too long, we will have justified providing full life subsidy to those who choose to go to school without working. This is neither economically tenable nor morally justifiable.
Eric
(09/19/08 9:06am)Report
The people I know who are on this are far from being in need. Most of their parents are paying for the school and rent. They just need it for grocery money. There are some serious flaws in how they distribute these cards. It is based off of your own personal assets but it does not factor in the money parents give the kids as gifts since those are not reported. If the kid shows a $3000 bank account, he can claim he is paying for rent and school when he really isn’t. They do a very lax job checking these things and plenty of people are stealing these government handouts intended for the poor.
silly
(09/19/08 9:44am)Report
“Once you’re out of the dorms, the cost of food is coming out of your pockets.” Somehow I have a hard time believing anyone coming off a $6000 MSU mealplan can’t figure out how to feed themselves for the equivilent of $700 a month. It all comes out of your pocket brother, unless your on the government’s tab for board too.
David
(09/19/08 9:44am)Report
I’m split, gang. Half of me shares Juan’s sentiments about coerced charity. But, the other half of me would rather see assistance go to students who, presumably, will obtain gainful employment and subsequently “pay back” (“Pay forward”?) their share via taxes…versus the handouts to n’er-do-wells who don’t have jobs but have fancy new sneakers and play their X-box all day. If the program is truly an investment in society…I’m in favor. If it’s just a reward for the perpetually lazy and unproductive…count me out.
MSU
(09/19/08 10:12am)Report
I don’t think we have the right to judge. I know a lot of kids that have to pay their way through college. Maybe those of you that are complaining are the ones that had everything handed to them by mom or dad. I know that I am looking into the bridge card because I graduated from MSU and my field of work is definately not a high paying profession. I work 40+ hours a week and hardly make enough to pay rent, bills, etc. Not everyone is looking to be “lazy” and ask for a handout.
Josh
(09/19/08 10:14am)Report
I am a college student on food stamps and I think it’s a great thing, Sorry Steve I don’t want to cut my load back because I would like to start working full time before I’m 30. I would much rather have us college students using food stamps then some crack head who just chooses not to work. I also work 15-20 hours a week SO IT’S NOT LIKE I’M CHOOSING NOT TO WORK. I pay for my own school, my rent, car insurance, cell phone, and everything else I need. It’s nice to have a little bit of assistance. I’m sorry i’m not like you Juan and Steve who don’t have a life other than school. See i actually have friends and a social life too so I am not going to take 15 credits and work 40 hours a week. I’m sorry. I am thankful for food stamps
Student
(09/19/08 10:25am)Report
Juan.
Are you kidding me? Your ignorance is astonishing.
I work TWO part time jobs, AND I am a full time student and it’s still not enough to cover all of the bills. I pay taxes too, you know, and the assistance is here for those of us who need it.
Just because someone is working does not mean it’s necessarily enough to pay for everything. I pay rent, and student loan bills, and books, and tuition on my double major, and phone bills. Must be nice to score a good full time job while you’re in school, but some of us aren’t so lucky.
And working on your MBA is different than your BA. Once you already have a BA, yeah it’s obviously easier to get a good full time job and go to school. But I don’t have that option because I am still working on my undergrad.
You just need to remember that we’re not all in your situation, and your experiences do not apply to the majority.
jjones
(09/19/08 11:16am)Report
ARE YOU ALL F@CKING SERIOUS?????
Where the heck do you think all the money comes for these Bridge Cards?? TAXES…MY TAXES…YOUR TAXES…….
Why am I subsidizing people to go to school? These cards were designed for dirt poor people(old, people in absolute poverty) so they don’t starve…not for punk white kids in College. College is a CHOICE….if you can’t afford it don’t go.
Oh..and I’m SURE that Brandon couldn’t possibly squeeze another $170 out of his budget…I would bet my left arm that Brandon has a cell phone, goes out for beer with his buddies, etc etc….
No wonder this country is in such a unbelievable financial mess…everyone expects others to pay for them
Colin
(09/19/08 11:27am)Report
‘Student’ above.
You work two jobs and are a full time student, and still can’t pay your bills? Pardon me, but lay off the sauce for a few semesters and act like someone who needs to be fiscally responsible.
I am pretty sure that – and I could be wrong – your loans were all cosigned, or paid for, by your parents.
I work 40 hours a week and go to school. I pay my tuition, all my bills, and go out once in a while. I refuse to get a Bridge Card because I believe other people need it more than me.
And this nonsense about note getting a good job? How about trying to find one? Have you? I make $22 an hour working at a job that I had to find by myself.
Student
(09/19/08 11:53am)Report
Colin,
You are right to consider the possibility that you “could” be wrong.
Firstly, telling me to “lay off the sauce” was rude and uncalled for. I am 18 years old, I don’t go out to the bar, I don’t go to parties, I don’t drink and it’s none of your business anyway.
Secondly, you would be VERY wrong to assume that any of my college expenses are paid for or even close to cosigned by my parents. Not all of us grew up privileged with rich parents. So much for “pretty sure”, eh? Your experiences do not apply to the rest of us. My parents have a Bridge Card as well, I am going to school to assure that I do not end up in their economic situation.
Don’t assume everyone has the opportunities you do.
unknown
(09/19/08 11:55am)Report
I can see both sides this. On one hand there are plenty of students such as myself who have absolutely no help from their parents or siblings. For all I know my parents probably don’t even know where I go to college, they were both alcoholic bums. There are students that need this but there are also students that abuse it as well. I have looked into the bridge card but not actually gotten around to putting in an application for one and I probably wont until I am forced to eat ramon noodles every day. I work 25 hours a week at 12 dollars an hour but its not enough to pay for rent and food. This is mostly because my parents bring in around 25,000 combined and MSU expects them to take out a 4000 parent loan to help cover living expenses which they cannot do because they have absolutely horrible credit and it would mean less trips to the bar each week. It is already costing me 10,000 a year in loans and its hard to make ends meet. So before you just assume that everyone that uses the bridge card is a well off college student stealing taxpayers money think again. I think this problem could be easily solved if they checked into the parents financial situation as well.
common sense
(09/19/08 12:50pm)Report
If the cards went to people who couldn’t afford it, I’d be happy. If it goes to save some dude beer money and teach him proper nutrition, and to spend his cash at a grocery store instead of blowing it on fast food, Granholm deserves a kick in the balls.
Josh
(09/19/08 1:19pm)Report
Hey jjones Student loans are there for a reason so we can go to school and get a good job. Sorry i can’t afford college and I am living on student loans but it’s the only way i can find a good enough job to support a family in the future
Past Student
(09/19/08 2:00pm)Report
Prior to MSU I worked full time and paid my taxes-no bridge card.
Attended MSU- used bridge card.
Finished at MSU, work full time and pay taxes-no bridge card.
Now maybe my situation was a little different since I had a five year old when I started at msu, I was also 36 when I made the transition back to school and had paid taxes since I began working at 17 years old. I do not have a problem with people using the system if they need to. God knows what I would have done if all I had was the part time job with the U and a full slate of classes.
If you need it by all means use it, that’s what it’s there for. If you don’t need it don’t use it.
If you need it while your at school fine, what really upsets me are the apartments I drive by everyday that have the 4 or 5 females their 7 kids and, most likly, the fathers sitting out on the porch doing nothing at any given time of day. When are we going to stop paying for the people that have figured out that if the females pretend they don’t know where or who the father is, we, the tax payer, will give enough money for all of them to sit around on the porch all day.
I also know that once in awhile they do get caught. My neighbors son had a child with his “girlfriend”, they had been together for several years. Well, so it goes that she had been telling the state that she had no idea where the father of the first child was and was able to collect money from your pocket for 6 years based on this lie; all the while he’s living with her. As fate would have it she became pregnant again and due to the fact that they aren’t very bright they went ahead and put dumb asses, (my pet name for him), name on the birth record. The good out come is that he has to actually hold a job,(she had always had a fulltime job), and they have to pay some of the money back. However the bad part is they still don’t make enough money so they are still recieving a nice chunk of change for food from the state.
Obama (bin Laden)
(09/19/08 2:35pm)Report
MSU: “I know that I am looking into the bridge card because I graduated from MSU and my field of work is definately not a high paying profession.”
Who’s fault is that?? If you go to a Big 10 university expect to pay high tuition. Just because you feel the need to go to a good school to work a lousy paying job is not my fault or anyone who has read this article. Get a degree at a community college and pay a third. Or, here’s a brain buster for you, GET A BETTER PAYING JOB! If your lifestyle is not conducive to your career choice then change one or the other. You libs are big on change when it comes to everyone elses lives except your own.
One other thing: it’s disgusting that the state news publishes info on how students can apply to this loop-holed program. And the fact they have a spokeswoman encouraging this is horrible. They are raping the Michigan taxpayers and no one wants to stand up against them.
Thanks for the Tip
(09/19/08 2:54pm)Report
I didn’t know college students could get a bridge card. I may have to get one myself. I pay 30k in tuition and work 20 hrs/week at $11/hr. Thanks State News!
Erin
(09/19/08 6:42pm)Report
“If you can’t cut it financially, then cut back your class load and work half of the week. “
Yeah, cause that’s always possible.
I have more than a full schedule of classes, I work part time and I have 18 hrs of week of an unpaid internship. Unpaid internship is requred for my major. Along with that most of my classes are required to be taken at the same time as my internship. Cutting school back to part time while doing the internship so that I can work more hours is not an option.
As for the statenews, it would have been nice to include some information in here about how this applies to college students who are dependents. I’m still considered a dependent of my mother, who has a new job and no longer qualifies for food stamps herself. But we live in different cities, buy and cook food separetly and my groceries come from what I manage to make at work (which right now means I can’t afford to pay my rent.)
Alone, I know I qualify. But how do I fill out the forms if I am a dependent? Do I simply not qualify based on that? I’ve been wondering for a long time where I fall because of these factors and I’m sad to see that the statenews didn’t bother to mention such things in an article on the use of bridge cards by students, many of whom are still considered dependents of their parents.
Steve
(09/20/08 1:59am)Report
Erin – Stop being lazy. Pick a different major if you can’t afford the setup you are currently functioning with. Something has to give, either your lifestyle or your class load. Why do I have to pay for you to get through school? College is a luxury.
Another thing… if you are so poor, then tell your mom to stop being a tightwad and using you as a tax deduction. Then stand on your own two feet financially and you can become independent.
On a finishing note… COLLEGE IS A PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT.
Erin
(09/20/08 6:52am)Report
“Why do I have to pay for you to get through school?”
Because if you don’t, you could be arrested for tax evasion, that’s why.
And I don’t feel sorry about that. If someone who has enough money to get by just fine has to pay a tiny portion of that in taxes so other people have the basic necessities of living like food, I’m not going to be upset that the first person had to pay a little bit of money to help those who didn’t have the same privileges of them. And look up where your taxes go. The bridge card system is not where the majority of your taxes go. The fraction of what you pay that you are whining about is so small.
John Q.Public
(09/20/08 4:11pm)Report
Amen,Erin!!! Maybe these “anti-government” waterheads should stay in their bunkers!!“I WORKED as an attorney while getting my MBA”..Are you serious? Attorneys are more of a parasite than the poor people who need a helping hand DOUCHEBAGS!!!
Julius Holmes
(09/21/08 1:46pm)Report
I think this article goes to show the stigma that america automatically places on people who go and get assistance. I get sooooo tired of people saying work harder. I don’t think most students have worked as hard as i have. I worked as a janitor for 5 years to get through school to buy books. Ive literally cleaned feces off of toilet stools till 4 oclock in the morning at the physical plant. This is something im sure most students would never in their life do. I have a bridge card!! YOU WANNA KNOW WHY? MY RENT IS 431 dollars a month and i only make 340 every two weeks at the phys. IM SORRRY BUT i got tired of going to the msu food bank. THe reality is some people can’t afford food even though they make work their ass off. HOW BOUT THIS FOR ALL YOU PEOPLE THAT ARE OUT OF TOUCH WITH REALITY. THE REALITY IS SOME PEOPLE’s PARENTS CAN NOT AFFORD TO SEND THEM TO A UNIVERSITY. I DO NOT THINK a person should dumb down their intellect and attend a community college(where they won’t be as challneged academically) just because their parents can’t afford to send them to university like msu. THATS WHAT AMERICA IS ABOUT? PULLING YOURSELF UP AND MAKING IT. SO THATS WHAT I DID. The fact that my parents can’t help me with school is something i wasn’t goign to let stop me.I wasn’t going to go to a freakin community college when i know I would be challenged more here at msu. I can’t believe a dummy would suggest that. I WORK HARD AND HAVE A BRIDGE CARD..SO IF YOU THINK LESS OF ME THATS YOU BEING DUMB!! I happen to know mr white and he works similar hours at the physical plant like i do. Im glad that some of you never had to get a bridge card, but don’t think just cause you didn’t have to others are in the same shape. PEACE
small chunk my a$$
(09/21/08 3:37pm)Report
Erin,
To your comment: The fraction of what you pay that you are whining about is so small.
First, I just graduated from MSU last spring and make about $42,000 a year. Of that, the government takes out about $11,000. That means I’m making only about $31,000 and still have to pay for all of my own living expenses. So please forgive me and the others when there are blatant violations of otherwise worthy programs intended to help people who are truly in need. I however, don’t want to become one of those people who are truly in need because the government is taking my money and redistributing it to people who are undeserving. The taxes that I pay shouldn’t be a blank check to people who are unwilling to make reasonable sacrifices.