University of Iowa Staff Council has made employee wellness a priority area for the 2022-23 year. This lines up with the new UI strategic plan and efforts by Human Resources, which both are highlighting wellness. Each month this year, Staff Council and UI Wellness are working together to highlight a wellness-related topic. This month the focus is nutrition.
Many students, faculty, and staff have reported challenges with getting adequate nutrition. The reasons behind this are likely varied with time, money, cultural/societal norms, and education/awareness all being major contributors. University of Iowa offers a number of resources to help address this.
Sara Cathi, RDN is a new Health Coach within the liveWELL program who will become the team expert given her background in nutrition and dietetics. Megan Hammes, Senior Director UI Wellness within University Human Resources, has identified several free programs to support employees including Health Coaching, Lifestyles Prevention Programs, and liveWELL Trainings.
Stephanie Beecher, Basic Needs Coordinator within Office of the Dean of Students, is highlighting data on food insecurity, an overview of the Food Pantry at Iowa, and usage data for the Food Pantry. The Food Pantry has seen an increase in visits from August 2021 (327) to August 2022 (615) of 188%. As a result of this increase, the group is seeking donations to cover the project’s costs of food.
Food Pantry Call to Action – Ways to Contribute
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Amazon Wish List
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Center for Advancement - To donate to the Food Pantry through the University of Iowa Center for Advancement, please select "see additional options or make multiple gifts" and then "other." Specify it should be given to the Food Pantry at Iowa. Donations made through the Center of Advancement are tax-deductible!
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Writing a check – The Food Pantry at Iowa (Attn: Steph Beecher – 135 IMU)
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Volunteer at the Food Pantry over breaks!