Campus Food Pantry & Career Closet

The Penn State Brandywine Campus Food Pantry provides an on-campus food pantry available to all students experiencing food insecurity. The Career Closet allows students to shop for clean, gently used professional clothing to dress for success for internships, job interviews and other career opportunities.

How to Access the Food Pantry

The Penn State Brandywine Campus Food Pantry is available to all students experiencing hunger at Penn State Brandywine. Confidentiality will be protected.

To utilize the pantry:

Come visit us on the 1st Floor of the Vairo Library anytime from 7:30am to 11:00pm Monday thru Friday. NOTE: If you would like to access items in our freezer or refrigerator, please scroll down for special instructions.
Select your items directly from the shelves and submit a record here so that we can track usage of the pantry as well as our inventory.

The Center for Social Impact and Student Affairs are proud to offer this resource to all Brandywine students in need, whether you live on campus, off campus or commute from home. Questions? Please email bw-foodpantry@psu.edu.

See what's in stock and submit your order.

How to Access Frozen or Refrigerated Foods

If you would like to access the food items in our freezer or refrigerator, please visit the Campus Food Pantry on the 1st Floor of Vairo Library 10:00am-5:00pm Monday through Friday. If that time does not suit you, you can email us to arrange a time that does!

You will also be welcome to shop our non-frozen/non-refrigerated items during this time as well. Questions? Please email bw-foodpantry@psu.edu.

Would you like to donate to the Food Pantry?

Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions we receive on donating to our Campus Food Pantry.

Who can donate? Anyone can donate to the pantry!

Where and when do you accept donations? Please bring them to the Center on the 1st floor of the Vairo Library building, open 7:30am-11:00pm Monday-Friday. If no one is at the Center when you arrive, please leave your donations in the box directly below the large “Campus Food Pantry” sign.

What items are most needed? Personal care items and ready-to-eat, shelf-stable breakfast and dinner meals.

Special request: Shopping bags. Plastic bags, paper bags, reusable bags – we’ll use them all!

Can my club/group/organization organize a drive to support the pantry? Yes! Email us at bw-foodpantry@psu.edu to ask for a list of most-needed items and we’ll go from there.

Can I donate money to support the Food Pantry? Yes! Click here.

Please submit your Penn State email address when completing the form.

How to Access the Career Closet

The Penn State Brandywine Career Closet is available to all students. We offer a selection of free, gently used professional clothing to help our students dress for success for internships, job interviews and other career opportunities. Confidentiality will be protected.

To shop the Career Closet:

The Career Closet is in the quiet room inside Vairo Library. Enter the library through the doors by the circulation desk and then take the staircase inside the library down to the lower level. It is open Monday-Friday during Library Hours.
Select your items directly from the racks and submit a record here so that we can track usage of the closet.

The Center for Social Impact, Career Services and Vairo Library are proud to offer this resource to all Brandywine students, whether you live on campus, off campus or commute from home. Questions? Please email bw-foodpantry@psu.edu.

Submit a record of your order.

Would you like to donate to the Career Closet?

We accept donations of clean, gently used professional clothing to help our students dress for success for internships, job interviews and other career opportunities.

We have donation bins set up at three locations on campus:

Career Services, 1st Floor, Main Building
Center for Social Impact, 1st Floor, Vairo Library
Vairo Library, Circulation Desk

We welcome clean, gently used:

Suits
Button-Down Shirts
Collared Shirts
Blouses
Dresses
Skirts
Shoes
Belts
Scarves

Questions? Please email bw-foodpantry@psu.edu.

Please submit your Penn State email address when completing the form.

Would you like to support students in need?

You can visit raise.psu.edu/BrandywineFoodPantry to make a monetary donation. All donations will be used to fund the Campus Food Pantry.

Make a donation here.

Video Series: Campus Food Pantry Meal of the Week

Go behind the scenes of our Campus Food Pantry by reading this Penn State Brandywine news article. Learn all about the origins of the pantry, meet the students working to fulfill orders, and hear the vision for expanding its services for the future.

Penn State Resources: Food, Housing, Income & Health Insurance

PSU students needing assistance with food, housing, income and health insurance are encourage to reach out to Student Insurance Advocate Natahsha G. Gates, LSW, at 814-865-7467 or via email at insuranceadvocate@psu.edu. Her mailing address is: 201 Student Health Center, University Park, PA 16802.

In her role as Student Insurance Advocate, Natahsha has been assisting PSU students from all campuses with identifying insurance resources, and she commonly assists eligible students with applying for Medicaid in different states. Often, applications for Medicaid include the option to apply for other benefits such as food assistance, housing assistance and cash assistance. As she assists students with Medicaid applications, she reviews the range of programs they may eligible for.

For more details, visit https://studentaffairs.psu.edu/health-wellness/health-insurance.

Penn State: Who to Contact for Help

Financial Concerns NOT Related to Financial Aid: Contact Gary Miller at gmm21@psu.edu

Financial AID concerns: Contact Robyn Pettiford at rup235@psu.edu

Basic Needs Concerns: Contact Gary Miller at gmm21@psu.edu

Health Insurance, Food Assistance, Housing Assistance and Cash Assistance: Contact Student Insurance Advocate Natahsha G. Gates, LSW, at 814-865-7467 or insuranceadvocate@psu.edu

Penn State Crisis Line: 1-877-229-6400

Penn State Crisis Text Line: Text “Lions” to 741741

Additional Penn State Resources

Penn State Council of Commonwealth Student Governments: Central student government that represents all the campuses and meets 3-4 times a year to discuss issues facing students and advocate on their behalf.

Legal Services: Student Legal Services provides advice, referrals, document drafting, and other legal services to students facing personal legal issues.

Student News Readership Program: Free digital access to New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Centre Daily Times, and PennLive.

Fostering Lions Program: The mission of the Fostering Lions Program is to support Penn State students who came through the foster care system. The program assists foster youth in four key areas: Financial, Academic and Career Planning, Social/Emotional, Logistic.

Student Hardship Funds: Recognizing that unforeseen financial emergencies will occur for students; Penn State established the Student Emergency Fund to help meet the immediate needs of students experiencing crisis situations.

Student Care & Advocacy: Committed to helping students facing unforeseen challenges navigate Penn State’s structure in close and careful collaboration with campus and community partners.

Food Insecurity: Penn State resources can provide assistance with groceries, meals, toiletries, basic household items, clothing, textbooks, and more.

PSU One Garden Initiative: One Garden is the home of all the Penn State Commonwealth Campus gardens and farms. Here you’ll find information about each of those gardens and farms.

Additional Community Resources for Meals & Groceries

Food Pantry Search Engine

Food Insecurity Among College Students

No student should have to choose between paying for tuition or food. This resource from AffordableCollegesOnline.org discusses the scope of student hunger and possible solutions. If you are facing hunger, please know you are not alone!