CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Changes are coming to how your child will get lunch at school this year.
The bill keeps pandemic-era free food programs for kids going through the summer but stops short of extending them into the upcoming school year.
During the pandemic, all kids no matter their economic status, were eligible for free meals.
This will change starting next school year.
In 2020, Congress allowed schools to suspend eligibility requirements for free and reduced lunches. Prior to the pandemic student had to qualify for free or reduced lunches according to their economic status.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) School Board Chair Elyse Dashew said CMS representatives flew to Washington D.C. to speak with North Carolina senators to advocate for the free lunch waivers to extend.
“We met with Senator Tillis, his staff, and Senator Burr's staff to explain to them how this was going to play out in the classroom, for our children, for our families,” Dashew said.
Mecklenburg County estimates nearly 15% of households in the area are food insecure.
Congress did increase the reimbursement rate for school lunch and breakfast.
“That's going to help on the funding side,” Dashew said. “So we're really grateful for that. So it was a win.”
Schools will receive an additional 40 cents more for each lunch and 15 cents more for breakfast.
This is an effort to battle the rising cost to make those meals.
“Families who used to have to sign up for free and reduced lunch have gotten out of the habit of doing that," Dashew said. "In fact, we've got a lot of new parents who have just never had to do that before."
Applications for free or reduced lunches will be announced before the school year starts.
Contact Shamarria Morrison at smorrison@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.