Oh SNAP! College Kids and Food Stamps

Have you ever been in the grocery store checkout line and have seen people pay with a colorful card that is neither a credit nor debit card? In Michigan this card is called the Bridge Card and it is part of The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formally known as food stamps. Through this program, people who are at near-poverty incomes are supposed to be the only ones who qualify to be given monthly food allowances, however, currently there has been a significant rise in college students utilizing the SNAP program.
 
In my college in Michigan, the Bridge Card is the cool thing to have. In fact, one time, some students and I were talking about the Bridge Card and out of the group of five, I was the only one who didn’t have a card and people wondered why I wouldn’t just sign up and take advantage of the free money for groceries. I can list quite a few reasons why I would not “take advantage” (which is perfect ironic wording) of this “free money” program.
 
First of all, the money that is given to SNAP participants is nowhere near free. It is, of course, tax money. Other people are paying for these bridge card holders' out of season fruits and overly-priced items I constantly see them buying, things they would probably not buy with their own money.
 
Secondly, I, like many of my fellow college students who do utilize this program, do not need to be given this extra help and because these people are put on this program who could very well scrounge up their own money; they are jeopardizing the program for others who could really benefit from it.
 
When I called the SNAP hotline to get more information about the program, the operator on the phone told me that college students must be working 20 hours a week, however they can often get a waiver if they have an intense school load. Someone I know recently signed up for the bridge card and she is not working and did not need a waiver for the four classes she is taking. She also didn’t even need to go in-person to apply for a bridge card, as it was all done electronically over the internet. I can understand if someone is taking a hefty class load and can’t work, but if I was the person approving people’s applications and a person applying told me that their schedule consists of class only two days a week, I think I would tell them to get a part-time job and that would probably take care of that person’s need for food money.
 
While some college kids are using the SNAP program as an easy way to get out of working while still in school, they don’t understand that this program is a part of the welfare program and should really only be utilized if you honestly can’t afford food. I’ve talked to several people who have been turned down for food stamps, people who are trying to support families and work one or two jobs. The fact that these people have been turned down, while college students who aren’t even looking for jobs have been accepted, tells me that the Michigan SNAP admissions department really needs to be looked into and re-examined.
 
If a student is truly struggling to pay for school, has a job or can’t handle a job with their course load, I am definitely not against that person getting SNAP assistance. But for all the kids who have Bridge Cards because it’s the “in” thing to have, and buy their groceries with it and, in the same trip, purchase $75 worth of alcohol with their own money (I’ve seen that happen more than once), then I think we have a problem and something needs to be changed in the SNAP system.