Daily Independent (Ashland, KY)

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July 22, 2012

Fairview takes free-meal option

All elementary students will get no-cost breakfasts and lunches

Mike James The Independent

WESTWOOD — All Fairview elementary students will get free breakfasts and lunches starting this fall and for at least the next four years.

The free meals come through a federal program called the community eligibility option. Eligibility is based on the number of students on supplemental nutrition, formerly called food stamps.

At Fairview Elementary, almost 56 percent of children are in that category, well above the 40 percent threshold.

The high school doesn’t qualify because only 36 percent of its students receive supplemental nutrition assistance.

The district receives reimbursement for 89 percent of the cost and will have to make up the rest. Food service director Jo Williams said the district stands to lose some money but could offset the loss by increasing its ala carte food prices and adding more menu options for adults.

The free meals don’t come with  income guidelines — all students can get them no matter how much money their families make.

Already, 77 percent of elementary students in the district are eligible for free or reduced-price meals, so the new policy will most benefit working families whose incomes are just over the limit, Williams said. Every year there are families on the borderline whose children risk not eating lunch, she said.

In four years, the district can reapply for the program if at least 40 percent of students are receiving supplemental nutrition.

The policy also means a change in paperwork for the district, which no longer has to collect applications for free and reduced lunch, said Principal Eric Hale.

However, parents will have to fill out a separate form, called the household income form, which the district uses to prove its eligibility for program funding in a number of areas.

Those include the family resource and youth service centers, Title I, technology and others, he said. “The form is a lifeline for a lot of the other things we do for our kids.”

 Previously the district used the free and reduced lunch applications to gather that information.

Free meals for all students makes it more likely children will be getting proper nutrition every day at school, and that is likely to improve their grades, Hale said. Research has shown a close link between proper nutrition and critical thinking skills, he said.

Elsewhere in northeastern Kentucky, Carter County has taken the option at all its schools, said food service director Sheila Bradshaw. Last year only five Carter schools were eligible and included in the program.

MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2652.

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