More Than Ramen: Hunger on Campus at TMCC 

Everyone knows the joke about college students surviving on ramen noodles. Though, for many students at Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC), there’s nothing funny about it, and the reality looks very different from the stereotype. 

The typical TMCC student is 24 years old, and about 70% attend part time. Many are working, raising kids, or both while chasing a degree. When rent, power bills and groceries all keep climbing, food is often the first thing to give. 

From a Desk Drawer to Four Pantries 

Dr. YeVonne Allen, TMCC’s Vice President of Student Services, remembers exactly how the campus pantry began. Around 2016, a staff member in the counseling

center noticed students who couldn’t afford the cafe and started keeping peanut butter, rice, and beans in a desk drawer for them. Word spread, the need grew, and the college faced a big question: how do you build a food pantry with no budget? 

The answer was a partnership with Food Bank of Northern Nevada. “If it wasn’t for that partnership, there’s no way we could have the amount of services that we have now,” Dr. Allen says. 

Today, that drawer has become Wizard’s Warehouse, with a pantry on every TMCC campus. What’s up with the name? Well, it was chosen on purpose: to take the stigma out of asking for help. Three of the four locations have refrigerators, and a weekly produce delivery from the University of Nevada, Reno means students can walk out with fresh food, not just shelf-stable staples. 

Katie Massey, who coordinates the college’s counseling center and manages the pantries, has watched demand climb since she started in 2022. Wizard’s Warehouse now serves anywhere from 150 to nearly 500 people a month, and about 95% of them are students. Roughly the same percentage of the food on the shelves comes through the Food Bank. 

So, who can show up? Anyone. That’s right; there’s no ID requirement and no proof of income, and the pantry is open to students, staff, faculty and community members.

A Need That Keeps Growing 

Massey says the pressure on students has only intensified. When SNAP benefits were paused in November 2025, it was a scary time for students and staff. Rising food prices and unstable housing make things harder, and many students do not have a place to cook, so easy, nutritious, grab-and-go options matter. 

Her most telling observation is how students behave once they get through the door. “Most of our students don’t want to take the amount that they are allowed to take because they think that everybody else needs more support than them,” she says. Her message to them is simple: take what you need. 

Massey also wants donors and neighbors to let go of an old myth. “Our students are some of the hardest workers I’ve ever seen,” she says. “They have a goal in mind and they’re working towards it, even through all of these hurdles.” 

Why It Matters 

Students can’t succeed when their basic needs go unmet. Massey puts it plainly, and researchers, parents, and counselors echo the same fact: nobody can focus on class and homework on an empty stomach. And it has to be good food. “It’s not enough to just have food,” she adds. “It has to be nutritious food.” 

TMCC tracks the results, and the numbers back that up. In the most recent data, students who used Wizard’s Warehouse had a course pass rate of 84 percent, compared with 82 percent for everyone else, along with slightly higher average GPAs. The pantry also connects students to other support, including the college’s emergency fund and a SNAP Employment and Training program. 

Dr. Allen sees a bigger picture, too. About 90 percent of TMCC students stay in the region, so supporting them is a direct investment in the local community.