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Bill would raise bureaucratic barriers to free lunch at low-income schools

Of the 662 Michigan schools that qualify for the Community Eligibility Provision, 167 would no longer be eligible under HR 5003, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Tim Lauer
/
Creative Commons
Of the 662 Michigan schools that qualify for the Community Eligibility Provision, 167 would no longer be eligible under HR 5003, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

For many children living in poverty, hunger is an everyday reality, and going to school hungry can have a big impact on a kid’s ability to learn.

That’s one of the reasons why the federal government offers free lunches to low-income students.

As part of theHealthy and Hunger Free Kids Actof 2010, Congress made it possible for schools with a certain percentage of low-income students to offer free lunch to all of their students. It set up the Community Eligibility Provision, or CEP.

A Republican-led bill currently making its way through the U.S. House would change the requirements of the CEP and make it harder for schools to qualify.

Supporters of HR 5003 -- The Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act -- say it directs money to the neediest students. But opponents say it’s a step backward in the fight against childhood hunger.

Zoë Neuberger, aSenior Policy Analyst with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, joined Stateside to talk about CEP, the proposed changes to the program and what that could mean for school going forward.

Neubergertold us that limiting the ability of the highest poverty schools to offer free breakfast and lunch in order to improve other programs, as she explains supporters of HR 5003 want to do, is a "false choice."

"We should not have to make a tradeoff," Neuberger said. "Children need to eat three meals a day year-round, and Congress doesn't have to make it harder to offer meals in one situation to offer them in another."Our conversation with Zoë Neuberger, a Senior Policy Analyst with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

We also spoke with MaryKurkowski, the Food and Nutrition Services Director at Port Huron Schools.

The district is in its fifth year of offering free meals through community eligibility.

According toKurkowski,CEPhas had a tremendously positive impact on her school district. Not only have the kids shown improved behavior and academic performance, she said, but the practice also eases the burden on families who might not be able to afford to adequately feed their children under normal circumstances.

Looking at the effects CEP has had on Port Huron Schools, Kurkowski says she "can't think of really any negatives."

Our conversation with Mary Kurkowski, the Food and Nutrition Services Director at Port Huron Schools

GUESTS

Mary Kurkowski is the Food and Nutrition Services Director at Port Huron Schools

Zoë Neuberger is a Senior Policy Analyst with theCenter on Budget and Policy Priorities

Copyright 2021 Michigan Radio. To see more, visit Michigan Radio.

Bill would raise bureaucratic barriers to free lunch at low-income schools

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