Kissimmee – Valencia College, Florida Blue and the Florida Blue Foundation today celebrated the launch of the new VCentials market at the college’s Osceola Campus.
VCentials provides students with free access to healthy, nutritious food and hygiene items in a store-like environment on campus.
The partnership between Valencia College and Florida Blue seeks to improve the lives of students facing food insecurity, resulting from rising food costs and other expenses, low-paying, part-time jobs, and or loss of access to free lunch programs after graduating from high school. Florida Blue and the Florida Blue Foundation supported the launch of VCentials with a $399,745 contribution – that helped the college launch a market at the West Campus in 2023 and a second one at the Osceola Campus in 2025.
“In 2021, a Valencia survey revealed that a staggering 40% of our students reported food insecurity so severe that they skipped meals due to financial insecurity,” said Kathleen Plinske, president of Valencia College. “And that is why VCentials is so important. VCentials is not just a pantry. It is a dignified, welcoming market, where students can select fresh produce and healthy groceries free of charge. These markets give students one less barrier and one more opportunity to thrive.”
“A few years ago, the pandemic exposed an epidemic of food insecurity and many of our friends, neighbors and loved ones continue to face economic challenges, especially with the continued rise of inflation,” said Tony Jenkins, Central Florida Market President of Florida Blue. “The food and essentials that will be provided here at VCentials are indeed truly essential – these items may be life-changing and lifesaving for some students.”
Since the first VCentials opened on West Campus, the resource center has had more than 60,000 visits, said Lesley Frederick, Valencia College vice president of student affairs. “Perhaps most striking, 82% of those visitors reported living under the federal poverty level and 38% reported at least one person in the household under the age of 18. These numbers remind us that the need is real and that, together, we are making a profound difference,” Frederick said.
The new VCentials is located in Building 4 of the Osceola Campus.
At Monday’s event, Florida Blue also announced that it is providing an additional $3 million this year in grants to eight nonprofits through the state of Florida that are tackling the state’s food security crisis. Two of the recipients are located in Central Florida: Advent Health Foundation and Grace Medical Home.