Penn State Sustainability

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Sustainability’s Intersections Film Series will launch its 2026-27 season with a screening of “Hungry to Learn” at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 30. The film is free and open to all, with pre-registration required at this registration link.

As of 2024, 41% of college students are food-insecure and 48% are housing insecure, according to a Hope Center survey of 74,350 participants. These problems may be invisible to faculty or fellow students, but they can substantially impact student success in the classroom and beyond.

“Hungry to Learn,” a film by Geeta Gandbhir, follows four students as they navigate food insecurity while attempting to improve their lives through a college education. The film provides a glimpse into the struggles experienced by many college students, from cutting corners on nutrition to not knowing where they will sleep at night. It also suggests a reconsideration of how student success is measured.

"The film grapples with the unseen costs and challenges associated with gaining a modern education,” said Julius Camper, public programming coordinator at Penn State Sustainability. “But it also highlights the increased efforts among colleges and universities to shed light on food insecurity and support students experiencing it during their college careers. Our post-film conversation will further help to illuminate these efforts at Penn State.”

The panel discussion following the film will include experts on nutrition, student success and housing insecurity. Pre-registration is required at this link.

Scheduled speakers include:

• Miata Marie Alie, communications chair for the Center for Social Impact, Penn State Brandywine
• Sarah Brothers, Penn State assistant professor of sociology and public policy
• Kelly Griffith, director, Penn State Chaiken Center for Student Success
• Liesha McKinley, food and culinary literacy educator, Student Farm at Penn State.

The film is shown in partnership with the Lion’s Pantry, Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm; Food Recovery Network; Department of Sociology and Criminology; Commonwealth Campuses Office of Student Support, and Chaiken Center for Student Success.

The Intersections student-led sustainability film series features stories of people working at the intersection of social, economic and environmental challenges. All films highlight the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which serve as the basis for Penn State’s approach to sustainability. All films also feature post-film discussions with Penn State faculty, students and subject matter experts. Pre-registration for films is required and can be completed at intersections.psu.edu.

Penn State Sustainability's 2026-27 season of public programming centers on the theme “Seeing the Human Scale,” highlighting the fact that behind society's many problems — and their solutions — are real people.