CCR-1 Offering Free Meals To All Students

The Crawford County R-1 School District is offering free breakfast and lunch to all students for the 2023-24 school year, regardless of income.

The district made the announcement Aug. 21.

Bourbon will participating in the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Programs, which are part of the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP).

All students enrolled at Bourbon will be eligible to receive breakfast and lunch at school each day of the year.

The 2023-24 school year began Aug. 22 and the free meals were available that day.

Students are automatically eligible, but families are being asked to complete the free and reduced meal form, which the district says will ensure individual eligiblity “for certain state and federal programs” and additional school funding.

Students are encouraged to participate the school meal program by eating breakfast and lunch each day.

Additional menu items will be available for purchase, such as milk and a la carte at the high school.

CEP is offered to the nation’s highest poverty schools and districts. It allows no-cost meals to be served without collecting household applications, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

Schools that adopt CEP are reimbursed using a formula based on the percentage of students categorically eligible for free meals based on their participation in other means-tested programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

“Studies have shown that children who are not hungry perform better in school,” said the Crawford County R-1 School District in the Aug. 21 release. “By providing school meals to all children at no charge, we hope to create a better learning environment for our students. All food items we serve follow U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines for healthy school meals.”