For the 12 hours that Anderson Commons is open each weekday, thousands of students trickle in, taking advantage of the four different hot food lines, the salad bar and the pizza and soup stations. But approximately one in every 50 students who swipe in for a meal experience food insecurity — they come from families who don’t know where their next meal will come from.
Junior Addison Ream has always been interested in food, noting that everyone needs to eat to survive, but eating patterns vary greatly according to culture, upbringing and geography. As a Bible and theology major minoring in social work, she needed an internship. Ream set her sights on researching how families eat, and how these patterns relate to child welfare.
“We know that there’s a great link between children having sustainable food and a healthy developmental pattern,” she said. “I knew that this was an area I was interested in, and it just happened to coincide with the ending of emergency allotments of SNAP post-pandemic.”
After the COVID-19 pandemic ended, families saw a decline in the amount of money they received from the federally-funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), colloquially known as food stamps. Many SNAP recipients also have limited options when it comes to eating a varied diet.
Ream did a quick Google search on internships related to food insecurity and found the Center for Public Justice, advertising the Hatfield Prize. The prize is awarded to three student-faculty pairs each year, culminating in a research report on public policy relating to the wellbeing of children and families. Named after the late U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield of Oregon, who was known for integrating his Christian faith with public policy, the prize aims to advance Christian scholarship. Ream was fascinated.
“I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, a report where you have to research child and family welfare? That’s totally up my alley,’” she said.
Ream’s research involves literature reviews, background research and conducting personal interviews. She’s interviewed Illinois social workers, teen parents who benefit from SNAP, and food bank workers, among others.
In a given week, she typically interviews one or two people. Because it’s an independent research project, she has more flexibility when it comes to managing her time.
“I would say the biggest time commitment has been getting out into the community and actually talking to people, being on the ground in the neighborhoods that are the largest beneficiaries of SNAP,” she said.
Ream’s research goes beyond the political and socioeconomic aspects of federal food assistance programs, and she wanted to probe food insecurity and justice from a theological perspective as well as sociopolitical. She reached out to Keith Johnson, professor of theology, who agreed to partner with her.
“It’s such a privilege to be working with her,” said Johnson. “This is very much a partnership of equals, and I have already learned a lot from her. Addison is putting her liberal arts learning into action to help churches seek justice in the Chicago community.”
Johnson said he is also grateful to be partnering with the Center for Public Justice, which he said aims to use theology to advance justice.
“Together, we hope to offer a compelling vision that will help churches embody Christ’s love and justice to those in need,” he said.
A lot of the project’s theology draws from discussions about Dietrich Bonhoeffer that Ream and her classmates had with Johnson during his Christian Ethics course.
Part of the theological groundwork of Ream’s research involves recognizing the role that the church should play in combating food insecurity. She hopes that Christians will become more educated about food insecurity and recognize the impact they can have on a legislative basis.
“I think it largely goes unseen because it is unseen,” she said. “You can call your representatives. They are required to pick up the phone if you call them. I think sometimes people of our generation are nervous to call people, but if enough people do that, change can actually happen.”
Johnson agreed that Christians need to play a role in helping families who are struggling. He acknowledged that state and federal governments have a responsibility to lead well in this area, but placed more of the burden of loving justice on Americans.
“Some of these challenges are due to ineffective leadership at the governmental level, but much of it is due to simply a lack of love on the part of citizens of this nation,” he said. “This is where churches have been falling short. We have to love our neighbors enough to take responsibility for their well-being.”
Ream has been encouraged by how, at a time when SNAP stipend amounts have decreased by 25 to 40 percent and inflation has increased, the church has provided for people who are food-insecure. In some places, church ministries provide fresh produce and food to accommodate a range of cultural needs.
“Churches have actually been one of the largest faith-based organizations that have these food pantry resources,” she said. “It’s been really cool to recognize that the church has stepped up in a major way.”
Ream hopes that the Wheaton community will become more aware of how their neighbors are struggling and work to decrease food insecurity. Ream will continue her research into the fall and is hoping to apply to graduate school in public policy.
Not only did she begin research in a field she had little experience in, but she said the project has also shown her how there’s never an easy solution when it comes to implementing public policy.
“A lot of the time in classes or just in life here at Wheaton, we talk about loving God and loving neighbor,” she said. “But what does that actually look like when you only have a limited amount of funds and way more people to meet their needs? It’s been a really good act of humility, recognizing that even Christians with the best intentions aren’t going to be able to solve all of the world’s problems.”
