For a group of LGBTQ+ college students in California, higher education comes with a heavy price that is not just about tuition. An internal survey of scholarship recipients tied to the National Rainbow College Fund surfaced alarmingly high levels of anxiety, depression, and basic-needs insecurity. Students described food shortages, suicidal thoughts, and discrimination from both peers and family, prompting the fund to launch a new Student Advisory Council so those stories are harder to ignore. The findings give a stark, human snapshot of the affordability and mental health pressures rippling across campuses in the state.
What the survey found
According to the National Rainbow College Fund, 98 scholarship recipients completed the internal survey. Of those students, 79% reported anxiety within the past year, and 63% reported depression. Nearly two-thirds said they are facing financial insecurity, 43% said they experienced food insecurity while enrolled, about 25% reported suicidal ideation within the last year, and roughly 30% said they struggle with eating disorders. The fund says those responses prompted it to create a five-member Student Advisory Council composed of scholarship recipients from campuses across California.
Students say even small awards can matter
Students who spoke with Times of San Diego described in very practical terms how the awards helped them stay in school. One recipient said the money made it possible to secure housing with roommates and buy more reliable food. Another called serving on the new advisory council “a great step forward” in finally being heard on campus. Several students directly connected the stress of not having basic needs met to worsening mental health, arguing that no amount of resilience can fully cancel out an empty fridge.
How the fund is structured and scaled
The National Rainbow College Fund, powered by the San Diego Foundation, according to program organizers, awards $2,500 per scholar. The effort is funded by donations and is working to raise $500,000 this year so it can expand both scholarships and wraparound supports. The foundation and the fund also emphasize that applicant privacy is a priority, especially for students who are not publicly out and may not feel safe disclosing their identities widely.
Statewide affordability ties
The individual stories from scholarship recipients sit inside a larger statewide affordability crunch. A study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research found that roughly half of California college students reported food insecurity, and researchers linked those shortages to worse mental health and lower academic persistence. That backdrop helps explain why scholarship help, while crucial for students scraping by, is only one piece of what students and advocates say is needed to keep people both enrolled and well.
Political climate compounds choices
Students also say the national political climate is shaping decisions about where they can safely live and study. Felicia Tisnado-Nykaza told Times of San Diego that moving to another state can mean giving up protections such as access to gender-affirming care and restroom access for transgender people. That tradeoff, she said, adds another layer of financial and emotional strain to the already fraught process of choosing a college.
What the fund is doing now
Program leaders say the new Student Advisory Council will help decide how scholarships connect with campus mental health services and basic-needs supports, and that they have opened applications for the 2026 scholarship round. The fund’s announcement notes that applications open January 15 and close March 5, and that applicants do not have to be publicly out. Privacy is prioritized throughout the process, according to the organization.
Officials at the San Diego Foundation describe the council and the stepped-up fundraising push as attempts to pair direct aid with stronger campus and community partnerships, so scholarships can do more than simply pay the next bill. Foundation leaders say the advisory council is expected to push the fund to build stronger referrals to mental health and basic-needs programs, on the understanding that scholarships alone cannot fix the larger structural gaps students are navigating.
