Morning Brief: Food For Students, A Mistaken Identity (Maybe), And LA’s Flag

Good morning, L.A. It’s Feb. 24.

College is notoriously expensive, leaving the average student in California with over $21,000 in debt. To compensate, some undergraduates are forced to cut back on just about everything — including food — and that’s where CalFresh hopes to step in. 

The program provides low-income students with up to $250 per month to spend on groceries, and it can be a lifeline for those who struggle to pay for meals, reports my colleague Jill Replogle.

"The opportunity to have these benefits has been sort of life-changing,” Gina Basile, a junior at UCLA who is the first person in her family to attend college, told Jill. Basile works a minimum wage job, but found out quickly that her income wasn’t enough to cover basic necessities. “It's really frustrating, and really scary.”

Still, the vast majority of eligible applicants don’t take advantage of the program. State officials estimate that just 18% of students who qualify are enrolled in CalFresh — and that number is up from ten years ago.

Some experts think the reason for the low enrollment is stigma, while others believe that students just don’t know they have the option. Student volunteers are working to spread the word at many UC and Cal State campuses, and a handful of campuses are making an effort to normalize needing help.

“It's not something that people should be ashamed of,” said Ginnie Tran, a senior at UCLA who is also a CalFresh recipient. “Everybody deserves to eat."

Keep reading for more on what’s happening in L.A., and stay safe out there.

What Else You Need To Know Today

• Dolores Huerta, an iconic leader of the Chicano civil rights and labor movement, could have an L.A. street named in her honor.
• L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva struck back in his ongoing fight with the company that processes COVID-19 tests for the county. 
• The 2022 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is the largest snapshot of homelessness in the nation, but questions remain as to where funding comes from and how much it helps. 
• MacArthur Park has reopened after a four-month closure. 
• An Agoura Hills woman is suing the City of L.A., alleging she was mistakenly arrested by the LAPD and held in jail for nearly two weeks. 
• LAUSD requires all students and staff to take COVID-19 tests each week, and the costs are ballooning fast. 
• Millions of immunocompromised Californians feel unprotected and forgotten as the state rolls back its COVID orders.

Before You Go ... LA's City Flag Is Ridiculous

LA's City flag

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Courtesy the City of Los Angeles

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Did you know that L.A. has a city flag? Well, it does, and we have some questions. My colleague Ryan Fonseca set about trying to answer them back in 2019, and we still don’t quite understand how this particular combination of colors, shapes, and designs came to represent our fair city. Come dig into the mystery with us.