Supporting Students Sense of Wellbeing Through Participation in Service Learning with the CSUN Food Pantry: A Phenomenological Study​

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to understand if participating in service-learning with the CSUN Food Pantry supports student's sense of wellbeing. The CSUN Food Pantry, a program of California State University Northridge, provides free food, toiletries, and other necessities to the CSUN community. A qualitative research design was used to determine the importance of participating in service-learning on student's overall sense of wellbeing and to create a textual and structural description of the sense of wellbeing as experienced by the former service-learners. Additionally, a composite description of the sense of wellbeing was created. Results showed students sense of belonging was described as "being among like-minded individuals" and that the service provided purpose to come to college beyond degree attainment. Service-learning is considered a high impact practice in education that not only contributes to academic performance but also provides real world application of class learning, increased moral reasoning, and development of civic responsibility and commitment to social justice (Brownell & Swaner, 2009). Within the CSUN Food Pantry setting, service-learning can also contribute to the student's overall sense of wellbeing and sense of belonging to the campus community.