Neshoba schools continue offering free meals
The Neshoba County School District is lending a helping hand to students and their families around the county, offering not only free lunch but also free breakfast until the end of the school year.
The aim is to “Make the Grade” and stay healthy at Neshoba Central Elementary, Neshoba Central Middle School, and Neshoba Central High School.
Since the pandemic has laid many people off from work and cut down on work hours, families can use all the help they can get right now, according to Nicki Tadlock, Child Nutrition Administrator for the district.
Tadlock said it was decided by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in August 2020 that students in the Neshoba County School District should receive not only free school lunch and breakfast. They took the time to make sure the free food plan was set in stone and began the distribution of it at the beginning of the 2021 school year.
“The U.S. Department of Agriculture is letting us operate under the summer feeding guidelines, which state that everyone 18 years or younger at school can eat free,” Tadlock said.
“The schools get reimbursed with more money per meal compared to a reduced price mean in the school lunch program.”
She noted that this process not only works out for everyone since the district gets more money and students are getting to eat free, but they also get a wide variety of things to eat for breakfast and lunch that are healthy and nutritious.
Along with lunch, students get to eat things like cereal, pop-tarts, sausage biscuits, pancakes, waffles, muffins, and other nutritious, filling items to help them learn and focus in their classes throughout the day.
“Good nutrition improves learning, and we want to make sure that if there are kids that don’t get breakfast at home, they can have a good meal,” she said. “As they say, breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”
Tadlock continued by saying the best part of this program is seeing a significant increase in participation from students, particularly in the high schools. She said many families have expressed appreciation for the free meals since a lot of people are struggling due to the pandemic.
She said the increased participation shows the food distribution is benefiting the kids, whether they’re hungry or just want free food. It also flows smoothly since students can get their food and take it with them directly to their classes, with a “grab and go” breakfast.
As of right now, the free breakfast and lunch will continue until the end of the school year in May, and the decision to keep the free food distribution going is up to the USDA.