As Kuyper’s Assistant Dean of Students and Work, Emily Perton is passionate about helping students succeed. Thanks to a new grant from the Work Colleges Consortium (WCC), she now has another tool for doing just that.

Her project involves overseeing a team of students in the creation and running of a mobile evening snack shop, appropriately named “Cougar Bites.” The venture, she said, helps address a very tangible need on campus.

“One of the big things our students have been talking about needing is more options for after-hours food,” said Perton.

In the past, she said, when students needed to eat outside of regular mealtimes, they would often find themselves either going hungry or purchasing food off-campus, which didn’t always present them with healthy or affordable options.

“We’re really talking about addressing food insecurity and accessibility, which are some concerning things I’ve been thinking about a lot,” she added. 

The funding comes through the WCC’s Experiential Work-Learning Grant program, which awards up to ten individual and collaborative grants annually to faculty and staff of member institutions who undertake experiential, creative, or scholarly research projects. 

Beyond broadening on-campus nutrition, it also helps create more job opportunities for KuyperWorks students, including a Business Leadership internship.

“That involves things like marketing, sourcing and pricing food, and assessing how well the project is functioning, once it’s fully up and running,” said Perton. 

For that role, she tapped Nate Liberty, who has already hit the ground running behind the scenes.

“Building the project is proving to be a very entrepreneurial experience that requires patience and creativity,” he said.

Ideally, Perton and Liberty hope to see Cougar Bites fully stocked through outside donations so students can have access free of charge, although they are also exploring other funding options, such as incorporating Kuyper’s existing meal plan.

Overall, both have high hopes for the project after its expected soft launch near the end of the month.