This might have some bearing on why public higher education should be tuition-free (boldface mine):

George Washington University has for years pushed back against the notion that it is a pricey school for rich kids. The school grew its financial aid and ditched a requirement for applicants to submit admission test scores — measures intended to underscore a desire to recruit students from all levels of family income.

Now comes more evidence of economic diversity at GWU: The university is opening a food pantry to help students who are hungry and low on funds obtain free food, seven days a week, no questions asked…

The [College and Food Bank] alliance has 361 members, up from 15 in 2011 and 160 in 2014. Nearly all have active campus pantries. Among its members are Howard and Trinity Washington universities in the District, George Mason University in Northern Virginia and the University of Maryland at College Park…

Justin Archangel, 21, a senior from Moraga, Calif., also plans to volunteer. He said he sympathizes with students in need because when he was applying to college both of his parents lost their jobs.

“We were in a tough spot,” he said, noting that even though GWU is sometimes stereotyped as a “rich kids’ school,” many on campus are not wealthy. “I wouldn’t be here without scholarships.”

…When their meal funds run low, as sometimes happens, students scrimp on food. A survey in April of undergraduate and graduate students at GWU found 43 percent of respondents said they at some point had experienced not having enough to eat, and 52 percent said they were aware of others who were going hungry.

While the story is about a private university, most of the members of the Alliance are public universities.

If you wonder why so many people, not just The Kids Today, found Clinton’s early campaign statements about Sanders’ free tuition plans–especially the bit about not wanting Trump’s kids to get a free education*–so damn offensive (and patronizing); she still hasn’t overcome that, if polling data are to be believed**. Leaving aside the reality that over seventy percent of students already work, it’s clear a lot of students just aren’t able to make ends meet.

Free tuition at public universities would save a lot of money that could be spent on food.

*If this really bothers you, then raise Trump’s taxes.

**This also affects people who aren’t in college, as some of them chose not to go because they realized there was no way to afford it. That said, Clinton’s plan is better than anything Trump or the Republicans have on tap.