SJSU Launches Share Your Spartan Heart Campaign

Campus-wide effort to increase awareness and support for students in need

As San José State University prepares to open a central office to help students in crisis, it’s also launching a campaign to elevate awareness of the services available through the program.

The Share Your Spartan Heart campaign is designed to spread the word about the availability of emergency food and housing for students and provide multiple ways for faculty, staff and students to support the SJSU Cares program. Students facing an unforeseen financial crisis can receive direct assistance from SJSU Cares while those in need of food, housing, mental health counseling, or other resources can get short-term assistance while working with counselors to assess and address longer-term needs. The new office, which will hold an open house on Nov. 16, is intended to simplify student access to multiple services.

“Affordable housing, food insecurity and other basic needs continue to be of concern here on campus and across the entire Bay Area,” said President Mary A. Papazian. “The Share Your Spartan Heart campaign provides a tangible way for students, faculty and staff to donate whatever they can afford to help our students in need.”

There are four ways faculty, staff and students can participate in the campaign:

• donate $1, $2, or $5 at registers in the Student Union and the bookstore,
• give a meal from your dining plan to a fellow Spartan in need,
• use Boost, a mobile food service app, to order a meal and $0.25 will be donated by Spartan Eats for each transaction, and
• donate to charitable drives operated by different organizations partnering with Spartan Food Pantry.

SJSU Cares is working with Spartan Eats, the food and dining provider on campus, to administer the Share Your Spartan Heart campaign.

The campaign will be promoted across campus through email, social media, posters, flyers, table tents, the Sammy app and the SJSU website. It begins Monday, November 8, and runs through Friday, December 10.