SUNY Chancellor King Highlights SUNY Actions to Increase Food Security During Thanksgiving Break

November 26, 2025

Chancellor Thanks Students, Faculty, and Staff for Stepping Up to Support New Yorkers

Albany, NY — State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today highlighted actions taken by SUNY students, faculty, and staff to combat food insecurity, which continues to impact millions of New Yorkers, over the coming Thanksgiving holiday break. At the direction of Governor Kathy Hochul, members of the SUNY Empire State Service Corps (ESSC) have been assisting New Yorkers in filling out Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applications, and the Governor announced additional Empire State Service Corps members to assist at food banks. SUNY Service Corps participants also undertook a Day of Hunger Action on Friday, November 7. In addition, Chancellor King celebrated plans by SUNY students, faculty, and staff to give back to fellow New Yorkers over the Thanksgiving holiday break by volunteering at local food banks, food pantries, and soup kitchens, and by donating food to help those impacted by food insecurity.

"SUNY students, faculty, staff, and campus communities have been stepping up across the state to connect New Yorkers to essential food resources," SUNY Chancellor King said. "At Governor Hochul’s direction, SUNY Empire State Service Corps members have been leaders at supporting New Yorkers in need, and our campus food pantries have received support to be a part of the solution to this crisis. I am proud of our actions on- and off-campus to combat food insecurity, and I especially applaud our dedicated students who continue to support these efforts whole-heartedly."

SUNY Trustee Eunice A. Lewin and SUNY Trustee Luca O. Rallis, Co-Chairs of the Student Life Committee, said, "Even as they pursue academic excellence, SUNY students, including our Empire State Service Corps members, have been stepping up as part of the statewide efforts Governor Hochul has taken to address food insecurity. With the holiday season upon us, we are proud that SUNY students, faculty, and staff will continue to support their fellow New Yorkers however they can. We commend our students and thank them for their civic engagement."

 

President & CEO of the Food Bank of the Southern Tier and Chair of Feeding New York State Mark A. Bordeau said, "As CEO of the Food Bank of the Southern Tier and Chair of Feeding New York State, I see every day how deeply food insecurity impacts communities across New York. SUNY students, faculty, and staff stepping up to support SNAP outreach, food bank operations, and local hunger-relief efforts is making a real and immediate difference. Their service—encouraged by Governor Hochul and championed by Chancellor King—strengthens our statewide emergency food network and brings hope to families who need it most. We are proud to partner with SUNY in this essential work."

SUNY students, under the direction of Governor Hochul, have been at the forefront of serving fellow New Yorkers throughout the food insecurity crisis. Governor Hochul provided funds for additional SUNY Empire State Service Corps students to support SNAP applications and called on the entire Service Corps to undertake a Day of Hunger Action on Friday, November 7. Governor Hochul also announced $550,000 in emergency assistance for SUNY community college food pantries and related efforts to help campuses address the ongoing food insecurity crisis.

To build on those efforts and support New Yorkers who continue to experience food insecurity, Chancellor King is highlighting upcoming actions that SUNY students, faculty, and staff are undertaking around the Thanksgiving holiday. SUNY campus efforts include:

  • SUNY Adirondack held a Pack the Pantry campaign to collect donations for its on-campus food pantry, The Community Hub.
  • The State University of New York at Albany Honors College students volunteered at the Mohawk-Hudson Humane Society and dropped off four boxes of food and toy donations, as well as sorted $400 worth of bottles and cans.
  • The State University of New York at Binghamton held a food drive in support of Stop Hunger, providing nutritious meals for individuals in need.
  • SUNY Broome held its second annual Hornet Hope Center Challenge collecting over 3,000 pounds of food, 250 pounds of hygiene products, and raising over $1,400 to support its on-campus food pantry.
  • SUNY Canton’s Renzi Food Pantry gave out over 30 Thanksgiving meal kits that included stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, corn, yams, biscuit mix, blueberry muffin mix, brownie mix, paper plates and napkins, and a gift card to purchase a turkey.
  • Clinton Community College partnered with the Regional Food Bank to host a Thanksgiving meal distribution on Saturday, November 22. 
  • Dutchess Community College was one of the host sites for the Northeast Regional Food Bank’s largest single-day Thanksgiving meal distribution, which served more than 25,000 meals.
  • SUNY ESF is holding a charitable promotion, with a portion of maple syrup sales being donated to the Food Bank of Central New York.
  • Farmingdale State College distributed frozen turkeys and meal kits to the campus community on Tuesday, November 25.
  • The Fashion Institute of Technology hosted its annual Gather for Good food pickup and food drive for the FIT Food Pantry on Thursday, November 20, and supported over 75 students during the food pickup.
  • SUNY Fredonia’s Social Work Club held a food drive, with donations being delivered to the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Northern Chautauqua.
  • Herkimer County Community College campus members are participating in the annual Gram Lorraine Program, providing clothing, including a winter coat, and a toy, book, or game, to children and families.
  • Hudson Valley Community College partnered with the Regional Food Bank on Saturday, November 22 to host a Thanksgiving distribution drive-thru event.
  • Jefferson Community College’s campus food pantry prepared over 50 Thanksgiving bags for students; each packed with 22 meal essentials and a grocery store gift card.
  • SUNY Morrisville partnered with the Morrisville-Eaton Central School District to host the annual Thanksgiving Basket Drive, raising nearly $3,000 to provide full Thanksgiving meals and support local families during the Thanksgiving holiday break.
  • SUNY Oneonta students and staff partnered with Oneonta Middle School and Oneonta Head Start to build Thanksgiving food boxes that included turkeys, green beans, and apple pies, for families to celebrate a meal together in their own homes.
  • Onondaga Community College employees will be working at the Salvation Army of Syracuse during its Christmas Bureau event to distribute food and toys to families in need.
  • Rockland Community College’s Hawk’s Hub Food Pantry is hosting its annual Thanksgiving giveaway, providing students with $50 ShopRite gift cards to use for Thanksgiving.
  • The State University of New York at Stony Brook’s Sea Wolves Food Pantry has been serving students, staff, and faculty who are at risk of or experiencing food insecurity.
  • Suffolk County Community College provided Thanksgiving food baskets and turkeys to students and families in need.
  • Tompkins Cortland Community College will be hosting a Thanksgiving dinner for the campus community, with food donated by faculty and staff, and prepared by staff volunteers.
  • SUNY Ulster and an area restaurant, Darlings Roadhouse, partnered to provide Thanksgiving dinners for students in need.
  • SUNY Westchester held its annual UnHunger Games, during which different departments competed to donate the most food and hygiene products, and supported more than 300 student families.

Additionally, for more information about where to volunteer or donate food items, New Yorkers are encouraged to visit the Regional Food Bank: https://regionalfoodbank.net/ as well as Feeding New York State: https://feedingnys.org/, which has partnered with the SUNY Empire State Service Corps as part of Governor Hochul’s efforts to address the food insecurity crisis over the past few months.

Chancellor King also highlighted efforts taking place at SUNY campuses to address homelessness and ensure students have basic needs met. In September, Chancellor King announced a first-of-its-kind event, the SUNY Basic Needs Summit, to support efforts at improving access to essential resources including housing, food, transportation, and childcare. Since 2023, every SUNY campus has been directed to appoint a homeless liaison, whose job is to ensure that students experiencing homelessness receive the academic, financial, and wraparound support they need to succeed and thrive. SUNY has supported a learning network for these campus liaisons to provide ongoing training.

About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.

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