“The School Sees Us”: Southwest Minnesota State University’s Mustang Market Provides Food, Home Essentials, and a Gathering Space for Students

Southwest Minnesota State University (SMSU) is a rural, four-year institution located in Marshall, MN. The university is home to a diverse student population of around 8,500 and enrollment is growing. “We're one of the few institutions that have seen a back-to-back years of enrollment growth,” explained Mustang Market Coordinator Joyce Tofte. “And with growth comes growth of need.”  

The university’s food shelf, Mustang Market, is a Second Harvest Heartland partner and gets almost their entire stock of food and household products through the food bank. The market started during the COVID pandemic to meet the needs of students who were still living on campus while dining services were shut down. After the height of COVID, SMSU staff noticed that the need for the food shelf didn't go away—in fact, it grew.  

“The pantry itself, the Mustang Market, has grown drastically since COVID,” explained Joyce. “And we're looking at phase two of expansion over the summer into a new location, a new space just around the corner, but a much larger space.” The new Mustang Market space will expand to include more refrigeration and freezer units to provide fresh produce, dairy, and protein, as well as more shelves for bakery items and non-food essentials. 

Joyce (right) and graduate assistant Keshaun keep the Mustang Market running.

The monthly market day on February 20 may have been a blustery winter day on campus, but the Mustang Market was a warm, inviting space filled with students chatting and laughing. Nedoh, a senior studying elementary education and teaching English as a second language has been coming to shop at the Mustang Market since she was a freshman.  

“Even though I was on a meal plan, I continuously came here because they had laundry detergent and other like essentials that I needed for my dorms,” said Nedoh. “I heard about it through professors and the posters around the school.”

Another shopper, Seely, is a freshman and a student athlete who visits the Mustang Market to help stretch her budget. She also really appreciates the convenience of having the market right on campus. She picks up things for herself and her three roommates. “I completely love it,” said Seely of the market. “We use everything that we get and it's great.” 

Seely (left) and Nedoh shopping in the Mustang Market.

For the past two years, sociology professor Cindy Aamlid has been leading students in her research methods course in a research project around the Mustang Market. Through a survey of campus students, Cindy’s classes learned about barriers to using the market and food insecurity among students. “We did a final presentation to the administration and to our campus on our findings,” said Cindy. “I think that they were surprised that almost 50% of our students are food insecure.”

Despite these sobering numbers, Cindy sees a bright spot in the data her students have been collecting. “We found that students don't see the same stigma around [visiting a food shelf] that us adults have from our past,” she explained. “They like the space that it's in because of the windows and being able to see it. They say, ‘When I walk by it and see people in here, it removes that barrier to come to the market.’” 

Cindy Aamlid stocking fresh bakery items for student shoppers.

Cedric Williams Jr. is an admissions counselor at SMSU. He volunteers at Mustang Market by helping students take an anonymous survey about their experience after shopping the market. The surveys help staff get a good grasp of how the market is helping students and what other products or resources they’d like to see the market offer in the future.  

“Mustang Market definitely helps by just allowing people to have food,” said Cedric, who also shopped at the market when he was a student at SMSU. “Whether it's toiletries or any cleaning supplies, we all know that stuff costs a lot. Being able to come here and put those stresses away—that’s really nice.”

Cedric (right) and Joyce restocking spices in the market, a popular product. 

Students like Nedoh who visit the market are grateful that the school has kept the Mustang Market going. “The school is seeing us. They see that we need things,” said Nedoh. “So, if you need it, then go get it. No one's gonna judge you.”