By Matthew Weinsheimer

The University of Maryland’s campus pantry is a lot more than just a pantry — it’s also a classroom.

The pantry, first established in 2014, has been growing. It began in 2014 as a concession stand in what was then the Cole Field House, now named the Jones-Hill House. Last summer, the Pantry moved into its own designated space, with room for a walk-in freezer, walk-in fridge, test kitchen, and storage for other non-perishable items beneath the South Campus Commons and next to the Common Shop. 

Tessa Quade, a student supervisor of the pantry, emphasized how much the new location has changed its scope. 

“Before, it was hard to give out donations because we were outside and that stuff is a little bit harder to coordinate. But the biggest thing is the new fridge and the freezer. We are able to put in so much produce now and store it,” Quade said. 

With new inventory capabilities, the pantry is able to be an effective resource for many in a time of need. Anne-Elyse Pitre, who works for the Campus Pantry, has worked for the pantry since July and has witnessed its success. 

“[For] the week of October 11, and we gave out about 1200 pounds of food and had 190 swipes”, Pitre said. Each trip to the pantry requires students or staff  to swipe in with student IDs, not necessarily that 190 people used it. 

Katie Quinn, a pantry employee, has been working there since this summer and seen first-hand the role it plays in helping the community. 

“With the lack of access to food in general, and people realizing about supply chain [shortages],” Quinn said, “more people were starting to come in and be like ‘Hey, I need help.’”

The pantry is laid out more like a grocery store than a food bank — and that’s intentional. Staff don’t want students to feel shame for coming to the pantry. Students swipe their student ID to get into the pantry, scan the daily selection of produce and donations and checkout at stations that resemble grocery store registers. 

“We keep a count of how many people come in, but we don’t track who is who,” Quade said. “We really do try to make it so it feels like a normal experience.”

The pantry has a wide array of customers, including regular shoppers and people who just need one item. 

“You also have students coming in that may have just forgotten something for dinner and gotten something, or someone who might need a meal,” Quinn said. “So I think it is a good, chill environment for people to come in.”

In addition to its food assistance program, the new demonstration kitchen expands the possibilities for the Campus Pantry. With a full-size kitchen and five working stations, the pantry has hosted workshops on healthy and sustainable eating.

“The learning kitchen has a lot of potential,” Quade said. “Right now, we are trying to find the right balance between being able to give nutritional education, being able to use [the pantry] as a resource, but also making sure it’s something people want to come to.”

Pitre said the kitchen brings benefits for the pantry, too.

“We are putting the kitchen to good use and hopefully teaching students life long skills, but at the same time we are promoting the pantry and showing students this is what we have to offer,” she said.

The pantry is using every inch of the new space it can to provide services that people might need, even converting it’s office to a rentable quiet space, Quade said. 

“Our logic was that because of COVID, there are a lot of people that have doctor’s appointments, therapy, just meetings in general they need privacy for that they might not live in a space where they can do it,” Quade said.

Featured image: The Campus Pantry is laid out more like a grocery store than a pantry. Photo by Matthew Weinsheimer.