FIERCe

Student #3 Testimonial - "The Only Reason I'm Here"

Interviewer: "Question three, I just want you to maybe just tell me the effects you had from this? In the sense of your education and in the process of learning, and being a young adult and socializing and everything how did it affect you? Was it a large effect? Did it affect you mentally, physically? What came from this?"

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Student: "Obviously it is going to affect you a lot. Like i guess it affects you a lot emotionally. Constantly thinking about it." 

Interviewer: "It becomes your new train of thought"

Student: "I don't even know what to say" 

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Interviewer: "What were the effects that came from having food insecurity. In a wide grasp way, and today what are the effects from it?"

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Student: "The whole survival mode thing. That is the mentality that i'm in. I always put school first since that's the whole reason that I’m here. So like I’ll always put that first and before myself. If I don’t, if I can't pay for school, then I can't be here. That is why I’m here." 

Interviewer: "That's just your whole direction what you’re trying to do."

Student: "It kind of sucks because I can’t do other things. I’m trying to pay for it and trying to do my work." 

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Interviewer: "You’re just trying to survive. You don’t have time for fun, or anything besides that."

Student: "Every day right now is I go to school, and then right after class I go to work, and then I have to go back to school because I have a night class. Since I’m working on this other [project] I have to come here and do this, it is important to me. Whatever money I get from this [project] I’m going to use to pay for school." 

Interviewer: "Any money that you get you already know what you’re doing with it." 

Student: "I don't like talking about it" 

Interviewer: "It’s okay, it’s shitty, everything is hard. It’s so much of your life. It’s not just worrying about how you’re going to have lunch, it’s everything."

Student: "Since all my money goes to school, and to pay for my bills and rent I put that money away first instead of putting myself first. Because I’m gone from the house so much that I forget to eat. I don't have time and I don't want to spend the money. I don't know what else to say."