Health News
- Anderson Schools' Lunch Profit Is Down Nearly 10 Percent; Officials Blame New Federal Nutrition Standards; Students Object To Food
Anderson County school officials say new federal nutrition standards are costing them money and hurting poor students because the students don't like how the food tastes are opting out of school meals, Editor Ben Carlson reports for The Anderson...
- Russell Co. School Board Plans To Make All Campuses Tobacco-free, Renews Free-lunch-for-all Plan After Breaking Even
School districts in Kentucky often deal with health issues. The Russell County Board of Education dealt with two important ones, tobacco use and school lunch, in its meeting last week. State officials are pushing to get schools to make their campuses...
- Some School Districts Reject Federal Offer Of Free Lunch For All Students, Saying Schools Would Lose Money On The Deal
Some school districts are rejecting a federal program that would provide free meals to all students in districts with a certain percentage of students in poverty, Jared Nelson reports for The Times Leader in Princeton, after the Caldwell County Schools...
- Free-for-all Food Program Increases Student Participation, Raises Ky. Breakfast Count By 25% With Only 39% Of Districts Participating
Kentucky schools participating in a program that provides free breakfast and lunch to all students in high-poverty schools have significantly increased student participation in school lunch and breakfast programs, Charles Edwards reports for Education...
- 13 Kentucky Schools, 11 In Perry County, Receive Funds And Other Help To Get More Kids Eating Breakfast
Thirteen Kentucky schools will receive money and other help to get more children eating breakfast at school, an undertaking funded by Kellogg's cereal company and Action for Healthy Kids. The goal is to serve 1 million more breakfasts nationwide to...
Health News
Some school districts say they can't afford new federal program to give free meals to all students
Many school districts are reportedly opting out of a new federal pilot program that provides free breakfast and lunch to all students attending schools where poverty rates are high. They say budget constraints, fear of losing other federal benefits, and the possiblity of having to raise taxes to maintain the program are keeping them from participating. Kentucky, Tennessee and Illinois were the three states chosen to implement the program first.
When the U. S. Department of Agriculture announced the Community Eligibility Program in March, officials called it a way to eliminate red tape for school districts and "make it easier for low-income students to receive meals in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast program." Districts would provide free meals to all students for four years, then claim reimbursement for them, as they do for students who already receive free or reduced meals, reports Heather Webb of the Salyersville Independent.
Webb reports that officials of the Magoffin County Schools officials said they are not participating because they want "see how the program works in the districts that do participate." The reimbursement rate outlined in the program is less than normal rates, and in the county, it would cause the current rate of 86 percent to drop to 47 percent.
Of Kentucky's 174 school districts, 102 are eligible for the program. However, only 18 of those eligible districts are participating, The Licking Valley Courier (which is not online) reported in its Aug. 11 edition. It said the Morgan County Schools declined to take part because they would have to pay 25 percent of the cost and feared they might have to raise taxes to cover that.
Bailey Richards of the Hazard Herald reported that schools who do not have more than 60 percent of their students receiving free or reduced lunch can still participate in the program, but the respective school boards will have to pay the difference to cover all students. Perry County Schools Food Service Coordinator Linda Campbell told Richards her district could not afford to pay that difference, which would amount to about $300,000 a year out of its general fund.
Hazard Independent Schools Supt. Sandra Johnson told the Herald that she feared her district would lose funding from other government programs, like Title I and Family Resource Centers, which depend on the exact number of students receiving free meals, if they could no longer keep track of those numbers.
When the U. S. Department of Agriculture announced the Community Eligibility Program in March, officials called it a way to eliminate red tape for school districts and "make it easier for low-income students to receive meals in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast program." Districts would provide free meals to all students for four years, then claim reimbursement for them, as they do for students who already receive free or reduced meals, reports Heather Webb of the Salyersville Independent.
Webb reports that officials of the Magoffin County Schools officials said they are not participating because they want "see how the program works in the districts that do participate." The reimbursement rate outlined in the program is less than normal rates, and in the county, it would cause the current rate of 86 percent to drop to 47 percent.
Of Kentucky's 174 school districts, 102 are eligible for the program. However, only 18 of those eligible districts are participating, The Licking Valley Courier (which is not online) reported in its Aug. 11 edition. It said the Morgan County Schools declined to take part because they would have to pay 25 percent of the cost and feared they might have to raise taxes to cover that.
Bailey Richards of the Hazard Herald reported that schools who do not have more than 60 percent of their students receiving free or reduced lunch can still participate in the program, but the respective school boards will have to pay the difference to cover all students. Perry County Schools Food Service Coordinator Linda Campbell told Richards her district could not afford to pay that difference, which would amount to about $300,000 a year out of its general fund.
- Anderson Schools' Lunch Profit Is Down Nearly 10 Percent; Officials Blame New Federal Nutrition Standards; Students Object To Food
Anderson County school officials say new federal nutrition standards are costing them money and hurting poor students because the students don't like how the food tastes are opting out of school meals, Editor Ben Carlson reports for The Anderson...
- Russell Co. School Board Plans To Make All Campuses Tobacco-free, Renews Free-lunch-for-all Plan After Breaking Even
School districts in Kentucky often deal with health issues. The Russell County Board of Education dealt with two important ones, tobacco use and school lunch, in its meeting last week. State officials are pushing to get schools to make their campuses...
- Some School Districts Reject Federal Offer Of Free Lunch For All Students, Saying Schools Would Lose Money On The Deal
Some school districts are rejecting a federal program that would provide free meals to all students in districts with a certain percentage of students in poverty, Jared Nelson reports for The Times Leader in Princeton, after the Caldwell County Schools...
- Free-for-all Food Program Increases Student Participation, Raises Ky. Breakfast Count By 25% With Only 39% Of Districts Participating
Kentucky schools participating in a program that provides free breakfast and lunch to all students in high-poverty schools have significantly increased student participation in school lunch and breakfast programs, Charles Edwards reports for Education...
- 13 Kentucky Schools, 11 In Perry County, Receive Funds And Other Help To Get More Kids Eating Breakfast
Thirteen Kentucky schools will receive money and other help to get more children eating breakfast at school, an undertaking funded by Kellogg's cereal company and Action for Healthy Kids. The goal is to serve 1 million more breakfasts nationwide to...