No more free lunches for all; Hoover school board OKs new meal prices for 2022-23

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Free breakfasts and lunches for all students at school are going away this school year, so the Hoover Board of Education today approved new meal prices for the 2022-23 school year.

For the past two years, Congress has funded a universal free meal program for all students as part of its COVID-19 relief assistance plan, but funding for free meals for all students ended on June 30.

The traditional program for free and reduced-priced meals for lower-income families is returning, but other students now have a new price schedule.

Breakfasts in Hoover schools will cost $1.75 for elementary and intermediate students and $2 for middle and high school students, while lunches will cost $2.50 for elementary and intermediate students and $3 for middle and high schoolers.

That’s a 20-cent increase in the breakfast price for elementary students from what it was in the 2019-20 school year, and a 45-cent increase in breakfast price for middle and high schoolers, said Melinda Bonner, the school system’s child nutrition director. Lunches are up 10 cents for elementary students and 35 cents for middle and high schoolers, she said.

The higher prices were necessary due to food price increases, Bonner said.

The school district is still dealing with supply chain issues, and substitute food items typically cost more, she said. “Manufacturers have just not caught up yet.”

Students from low-income families can apply for free or reduced-price meals at myschoolapps.com. Qualifying depends on each family’s income and household size.

A family of four can qualify for free meals if their annual income is less than $36,075 or reduced-price meals if their income is less than $51,338, according to the Federal Register. Students on the reduced-price meal program will pay 30 cents for breakfast and 40 cents for lunch.

In addition to qualifying for free or reduced-price meals during the school year, all families that receive approved benefits are eligible for a 2022 summer payment of $391 for each child, according to information from Hoover City Schools.

Families must apply for free or reduced-price meals no later than Aug. 31 to be awarded that distribution from the Alabama Department of Human Resources.

Applications for free and reduced-price meals are available online in English, Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese and Chinese Mandarin, and applications are available in other languages from the district’s child nutrition department.

Foster children and children whose families are on food stamps or Medicaid automatically qualify for free meals and do not have to fill out an application, Bonner said. That information is captured at the time of enrollment, she said.

In April of this year, 60% of students enrolled in Hoover schools — about 8,100 students — took part in the school lunch program, while 28% — about 3,780 students — participated in the breakfast program, Bonner said.

The Hoover City Schools child nutrition program historically has had a budget of about $9 million a year, which includes paying for food, supplies, equipment, utilities and labor, Bonner said. The federal government in the past has paid about 40 cents per meal served in the regular-price program and $3.48 for each meal served in the free meal program, Bonner said.

This year, Congress authorized an additional 40 cents per meal for students in the regular-price program, but exact federal payments have not yet been released, she said.

Bonner said she was disappointed the federal government did not continue its universal free meal program this year because even families who don’t qualify for free or reduced-price meals are struggling to deal with inflation.

She doesn’t understand why students get a free education, free bus service and free Chromebooks but don’t get free food at school, she said. She is concerned that students whose families are struggling financially will resort to bringing less costly and less nutritious food to school and that students will not get adequate nutrition, she said.

In other business today, the Hoover school board approved the hiring of Lindsay Morgan as the new assistant principal at Trace Crossings Elementary School.

Morgan has been a special education teacher at Trace Crossings the past three years and this past year was the lead special education teacher. Before that, she taught eight years in Tarrant City Schools, including five years as a third-grade teacher and three years as a reading specialist, she said.