PirateQ 
When walking down the hall to the Pirates CARE main office in the PSC Student Center, one sees glass “storefront windows” on the left, housing the Campus Career Closet – or the “Pirates CARE Boutique,” as Jessica Johnson, Director of Wellness Services likes to call it. Students who have filled out a one-time application to utilize all Pirates CARE services can try on clothing items donated by staff, faculty and community members. Johnson said students come mostly for classes like public speaking or for job interviews and need to borrow jackets or blouses. “They come back to tell us they got the jobs; that’s really nice. We get to help students, and then we get to hear about their successes,” stated Executive Director of Equal Opportunity Compliance Lynsey Listau. Their dream is to expand the clothing closet…to have not only business casual and professional clothing but to also have jeans and nice shirts so that students who just have that clothing need can get that met as well, shared Listau.
Down the hall and just beyond the eSports gaming room is a student lounge where students can hang out and grab coffee, water or snacks, if available. They can also charge cell phones or tablets, and if they have children, there is a space for them to play (although the Pirates CARE team does not provide childcare). The technology area allows students to browse the web or take their online courses, and they can even print paperwork for free. Students can check out laptops to use for classes, at no cost and for a semester at a time. Dedicated office space also allows staff members to meet privately with students concerning other basic needs like finances or for life coaching and mentoring.
The Pirates CARE food pantry partners with the local Manna food bank, which provides as many food bags as needed, filled with enough food for five days, based on USDA nutritional guidelines; students can use the pantry twice a month, with a limit of four bags for larger families. Listau stated, “Most universities with food pantries limit food to the individual students. Here, we ask, ‘What’s your household size?’ because it’s one thing to provide food to the student, but if a student has children or is taking care of parents or a partner, and those individuals are also hungry, it adds stress. If we only gave one bag per household, then [students] are more than likely feeding their children before feeding themselves, so they continue to come to class hungry.” The team also works with students with special nutritional requirements (such as gluten-free or diets based on religious eating restrictions).
Donated supplemental items are also used to make small bags, if Manna bags are gone, as well as “snack bags” for homeless students, with smaller items they can eat straight out of cans or that can be heated up in microwaves. Johnson said that twice a semester, their popular “Market Day” program offers specifically themed items students might need for a Thanksgiving meal, for example, including fresh fruit and vegetables that don’t need to be refrigerated.
Students can also pick up five basic health and hygiene items each time they come in, such as toothbrushes and toothpaste, deodorant, soap, shampoo and conditioner, laundry and dish detergent pods, sponges and even can openers, as “so often, we’re giving students food in these food bags, mostly canned items, but if they don’t have a can opener, they can’t even get into what we are giving them,” stated Listau. These basic health and hygiene items are provided through a limited grant, and the team is hoping to be able to continue this service through other means after the grant money runs out.
Other assistance provided by the Pirates CARE team includes emergency aid (for rent, utility bills or childcare which includes budget plans and documentation) and $20 gas cards or 30-day bus passes to enable students to get to campus for classes. Johnson asserted, “The goal is to succeed here. [Some students] have no idea how FAFSA works, they have no idea about books, they don’t even have plans other than, ‘I’m here. Now what?’ It really does take a wrap-around approach. I tell students, ‘If you want to be here, I want you to be here. Let’s work together.’”
For more information about the Pirates CARE program, students and donors can check out https://www.pensacolastate.edu/piratescare or call (850) 484-1759.