Ozarks Tech is advancing two creative, student-focused programs that meet immediate needs while building community: Fresh Harvest and Eagle Breakfast.
These food programs are more than meals. They are strategies for student success, tied directly to the college’s core mission of supporting students by using data to design programs that foster equity and accessibility. Supporting students’ success can take many forms — from tutoring to career counseling — but sometimes, basic needs must be met first. A hungry student can’t focus on an exam or plan for a career.
According to the National Institutes of Health, food insecurity among college students is considered a public health concern due to its connection with lower academic achievement. A 2024 study published in the Journal of Nutritional Science identified multiple barriers, including social stigma and inconvenience, as the top reasons why students shy away from utilizing food resources.
Ozarks Tech, like many colleges and universities, is not immune to this crisis. By addressing food access and reducing stigma, Ozarks Tech’s programs are helping students take that first crucial step toward academic success. Each initiative is designed to create a culture of support that is open to all, so no one feels singled out. Eagle Breakfast is discreetly tracked, allowing the college to link food support to measurable outcomes like retention and course completion.
Fresh Harvest: From Farm to Campus
The seeds of Fresh Harvest were planted at Richwood Valley, a sprawling 84-acre Ozarks Tech campus in Christian County with plenty of green space where agriculture students, faculty and staff maintain a teaching garden.
In the summer of 2024, after a bumper crop, Agriculture Department Chair Rob Flatness walked across campus with a five-gallon bucket, offering vegetables to anyone who would take them. From that small gesture, an idea sprouted: Why not funnel student-grown produce directly back to students?
What began as an informal giveaway soon blossomed into a weekly produce distribution program coordinated by the student resource team OTC Cares, along with the Agriculture and Culinary Departments. On a good week, Flatness delivers about 300 pounds of vegetables every Wednesday from midsummer through October to the Jared Family Atrium on the Springfield campus. Tables piled high with zucchini, squash, green beans, cucumbers, potatoes, okra, onions and tomatoes quickly empty as students scoop up the bounty.
“It was rare to have anything left at the end of the day,” said Sarah Bargo, College Director of Student Care & Engagement and head of OTC Cares. “Students picked it up almost as quickly as we could set it out.”
Fresh Harvest is intentionally simple — free and open to all, with no registration and no staffed table, just fresh produce for anyone who wants it. By removing barriers, the program supports both students’ well-being and helps fight stigma around food assistance.
“Fresh food is expensive,” Flatness said. “This gives us an opportunity to take what we’re already producing and put it in the hands of people who need it most.”
Still, access alone doesn’t solve everything. OTC Cares staff noticed that some students hesitated to pick up unfamiliar vegetables, such as eggplant. Culinary students stepped in, creating recipe cards with easy meal ideas such as pesto grilled cheese, taco bowls and simple salads.
Bargo acknowledged that Fresh Harvest isn’t a complete solution to hunger.
“But it’s something we can do that’s low-cost, sustainable and effective,” she said. “It’s nutritious, and it’s making a difference.”
Fresh Harvest’s impact hasn’t gone unnoticed. Vital Farms, a nationally recognized brand with an award-winning egg-washing and packing facility, Egg Central Station, in Springfield, has pledged support for the program’s continued growth.
Eagle Breakfast: A Meal With Momentum
At every Ozarks Tech location, Eagle Breakfast helps students start the day and their studies on a solid footing. The program offers all students a free morning meal, turning what could be a stigmatized service into a campus-wide perk.
Menus vary by campus, from classic breakfast sandwiches to biscuits and gravy with a fruit cup and drink. The process is simple: make a selection and provide a student ID number.
The impact is measurable. According to the Ozarks Tech Office of Research, students who participate are retained at a rate seven percentage points higher than those who don’t — 91% versus 84%. The advantage holds for Pell-eligible students as well, with an 88% retention rate compared to 81%. Course completion shows a similar pattern: participants finish their classes at an eight percentage point higher rate — 83% versus 75% overall, and 80% versus 72% among Pell students.
The idea first surfaced during a faculty and staff competition offering $10,000 grants for new initiatives. Eagle Breakfast didn’t win, but the proposal caught the attention of Chancellor Hal Higdon. Within four months, the first version launched at Café 101 on the Springfield campus in January 2021.
“That was our first step into really trying to destigmatize some of these resources that we have for students,” Higdon said. “We were intentional about making sure it was part of the student experience and open to everyone.”
By the following year, Eagle Breakfast had expanded to every Ozarks Tech location. Today, it is a fixture of campus life.
More Than a Meal
Food support alone can’t solve every challenge students face, but the impact is clear. Whether it’s Fresh Harvest produce or a free breakfast sandwich, these programs are helping students stretch their budgets, fulfill basic needs and focus on their studies.
By pairing practical resources with an open-to-all approach, Ozarks Tech is removing obstacles that can derail academic progress. The results — higher retention, stronger completion rates and a greater sense of belonging — point to a simple truth: when students don’t have to worry about their next meal, they are better equipped to succeed in the classroom and beyond.
Photos courtesy staff photographer Kristina Bridges and agriculture student Cadence Fox