March for MealsLynzee Gillespie, Emerance Mutimukeye, Shallen Stickney

Portfolio Overview

• Four Semesters• Service Learning• Social Welfare Policy• Methods of Social Work Research• Practice II

• Group Dynamic Change• Over 290 Combined Volunteer Hours

Portfolio Content

• Nine Chapters• 100 Pages• 44 References

Agency Analysis

• Developed in 1995• 5 Staff Members • Qualifications for Services• Demographics• Services Provided • Funding

Problem Analysis

• An estimated 2.5 million veterans are facing food insecurities.*• 27% of veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan struggle nearly

twice as much is civilians.*• Honor Veterans Now• Services/Agencies Available to Veterans

*Widome, 2014

Research Plan

• Objectives• O1: Identify the severity of food insecurities in veterans under the age of 60. • O2: Determine the quantity of knowledge the veteran population has of food assistance

programs in rural areas. • O3: Determine the amount of comfort the veteran population has when requesting food

assistance. • Research Question

• “To what extent does food insecurity affect veterans in rural communities?” • Hypotheses

• H1: Participants under the age of 60 are more likely to report less food security.• H2: Majority of the participants will report limited knowledge of food assistance

programs. • H3: Majority of the participants will report lower level of comfort while asking for food

assistance.

Research Plan

• Survey Formulation• Demographics Section• Military Background• Food Security Questions

• Six Item Short Form of the Food Security Survey Module(2012)

• Consent Form

Literature Reviews

• Exclusively Veterans (Wang, 2015;Dittrich, 2015; Widome, 2014)

• 3 Articles• Strength: Veteran specific • Limitation: Lack of diversity

within the sample • Promoting The Social Work Code of Ethics (Miller,2015; Libal,2014; Malone, 2004; Curry,2012; Savitsky,2009)

• 5 Articles• Strength: Discusses obstacles

the effect the population• Limitation: Lack of sample

size

• Specific Geographic Region (Bhargava,2012; Hardin,2015)

• 2 Articles• Strength: Compares food

availability • Limitation: Specific to 2

states

Policy Project

• Texas Administrative Code-40• Nutrition Services• Advocate to lower qualifying age for veterans

Policy Project

• Legislative Communication

Policy Project

• March for Meals Rally• Location and Time• Guest Speakers• Audience Engagement

Research Project

• Research Question • “To what extent does food insecurity effect veterans in rural communities?”

• 78 Completed Surveys• Snowball Sampling

• Social media

• Limitations• Lack of cooperation from community agencies • Limited variation in gender and ethnicity of participants

• Ethics• Confidentiality• Consent • Self-Determination• Sensitivity

Research Project

• H1: Participants under the age of 60 are more likely to report less food security.

• Proved- 20 of 22 participants who reported food insecurity were under the age of 60

• H2: Majority of the participants will report limited knowledge of food assistance programs.

• Null- 46 of 78 participants reporting knowledge

• H3: Majority of the participants will report lower level of comfort while asking for food assistance.

• Proved- 61% of the participants reported a 1 or 2 on a scale of 1-5

Research Project

• Significance• Micro- The individuals must have each of their basic needs meet, including

hunger, in order to be a productive member of society.• Mezzo- The results will be shared with agencies in order to better the

services provided to veterans. • Macro- The research will provide demographic information and food security

information that can guide future policy changes.

• Increasing knowledge on the issue of veteran food insecurity improves the dignity and worth of each individual by promoting access to resources to satisfy their basic needs.

Community Practice Project Timeline

• 16 Weeks• Monthly Community Partner Meetings• Service Day • Weekly Updates

Community Practice Project

• Applicable Grants• Schrebier Charity Golf Classic Beneficiary Program

• Application Deadline: February 1st • Maximus Foundation

• Application Deadline: January 31st• Birdie Hartsough Frey Memorial Fund

• Application Deadline: August 5th

• Grant Awards: September

Birdie Hartsough Frey Memorial Fund

Birdie Hartsough Frey Memorial Fund

References (2017). Retrieved from U.S Department of Veteran Affairs: https://www.va.gov/

About VA. (2015). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: https://www.va.gov/about_va/vahistory.asp

Bhargava, V., Lee, J.S, Jain, R, Johnson, M.A, & Brown, A. (2012). Food insecurity is negatively associated with home health and out-of-pocket expenditures in older adults. The Journal of Nutrition, 142(10), pp 1888-1895. doi: 10.3945/jn.112.163220

Bundrick, C.M., Sumerlin, J.R. (1996). Brief index of self-actualization: A measure of Maslow’s model. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 11(2), pp 253-271.

Burke, G., Greene, L. (2007). Beyond self-actualization. Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, 30(2), pp 116-128.

Byrne, T., DeVoe, E., Larson, M.J., Miller, D.P. (2016). Food insecurity in veteran households: Findings from nationally representative data. Public Health Nutrition, 19(10). pp 1731-1740. doi: 10.1017S1368980015003067

Change The World. (2017). Retrieved from CNBC: http://www.cnbc.com/2014/11/14/top-10-charities-that-support-veterans.html?slide=6

Code of Ethics. (2017). Retrieved from National Association of Social Worker: https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-

Curry, C., & Hoefer, R. (2012). Food Security and Social Protection. Journal of Policy Practice, 11(1/2), pp 59-76. doi:10.1080/15588742.2011.624062

Dittrich, K. A., Dillon, C. L., Grygelko, J. T., Hill, T. J., Huot, K. L., Kucharyski, C. J.,…Rioux, M. P. (2015) A population-based cross-sectional study comparing depression and health service deficits between rural and nonrural U.S. military veterans. Military Medicine 180(4). doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-14-00101

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Gilmore, G. (2012). Veterans Cite Importance of Honoring Military Service.

Grossfield, R. (2015). New Study Compares Food Insecurity in Veteran and Non-Veteran Households. Retrieved from Boston University School of Social Work: http://www.bu.edu/ssw/2015/11/19/new-study-compares-food-insecurity-in-veteran-and-non-veteran-households/

Hardin-Fanning, F., & Rayens, M.F. (2015) Food cost disparities in rural communities. Health Promotion Practice, 16(3), pp 383-391. doi: 10.1177/1524839914554454

Hoefer, R., & Curry, C. (2012). Food Security and Social Protection. Journal of Policy Practice, 11(1/2), pp 59-76. doi:10.1080/15588742.2011.624062

Honor Veterans Now. (2016). Facts and stats. Retrieved from https://honorveteransnow.org/about/#facts

Honor Veterans Now. (2016). Food Insecurity and Associated Problems. Retrieved from https://honorveteransnow.org/about/#facts

Honor Veterans Now. (2016). Leadership. Retrieved from https://honorveteransnow.org/about/#leadership

Hunger and Poverty Facts and Statistics. (2017). Retrieved from Feeding America: http://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/impact-of-hunger/hunger-and-poverty/hunger-and-poverty-fact-sheet.html

Hunger Solutions. (2016). Veterans face losing SNAP benefits. Retrieved from http://www.hungersolutions.org/veterans-face-losing-snap-benefits-back/

Libal, K., Tomezack, S., Spath, R., Hardin, S. E (2014). Hunger in a “Land of Plenty”: A renewed call for social work action. Social Work, 59(4), pp 366-369. doi: 10.1093/sw/swu029

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Meals on Wheels of America. (2017). Ending sequestration & sustaining federal funding for Older Americans Act nutrition programs. Retrieved from www.mealsonwheelsamerican.org/take-action/advocate/advocacyadenda

Miller, D., Byrne, T., DeVoe, E., Larson, M. J. (2015) Food insecurity in veteran households: Findings from nationally represented data. Public Health Nutrition, 19(10), pp 1731-1740. doi: 10.1017S1368980015003067

Neal, J.W., Neal, Z.P. (2013). Nested or networked? Future directions for ecological systems theory. Social Development, 22(4), pp 722-737. doi: 10.1111/sode12018

O’Toole TP, Roberts CB, Johnson EE. (2015). Screening for Food Insecurity in Six Veterans Administration Clinics for the Homeless. Prev Chronic Dis 2017; 14:160375. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd14.160375.

Older Americans Act. (2016). Retrieved from National Committee to Preserve Social Security & Medicare:http://www.ncpssm.org/PublicPolicy/OlderAmericans/Documents/ArticleID/1171/Older-Americans-Act

Rural Hunger Facts. (2017). Retrieved from Feeding America: http://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/impact-of-hunger/rural-hunger/rural-hunger-fact-sheet.html

Savitsky, L., Illingworth, M., & DuLaney, M. (2009). Civilian social work: Serving the military and veteran populations. Journal of Social Work, 54(4), pp 327-339. doi: 10.1080/15588742.2011.624062

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The American Legion. (2016). Mission statement. Retrieved from http://www.legion.org/mission

Time. (2017). Trumps budget would kill funds for a program that feeds 2.4 million senior citizens. Retrieved from http://time.com/money/4703456/trump-budget-meals-on-wheels/

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Wang, E. A., McGinnis, K. A., Goulet, J., Bryant, K., Gibert, C., Leaf, D. A., … for the Veterans Aging Cohort Study Project Team. (2015). Food Insecurity and Health: Data from the Veterans Aging Cohort Study. Public Health Reports, 130(3), 261–268.

What is Food Insecurity? (2017). Retrieved from Feeding America: https://www.feedingtexas.org/learn/food-insecurity/

Widome, R., Jenson, A., Bangerter, A. & Fu, S. (2014). Food insecurity among veteran of the U.S. war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Public Health Nutrition, 18(5), pp 844-849. doi: 10.1017/S136898001400072X