No free lunch next year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn’t matter if we think the food is good or not but that it’s a available for kids. I also don’t like some kids getting singled out.

Nobody gets ‘singled out’. The kids get the money and can get food at school as needed.

We don’t need a wasteful program that feeds crap food to all kids, even the ones in Potomac, whose parents can more than afford to buy their kids lunches.

We need a system with better food, period. The school lunch program is so intertwined with farm subsidies that I have little confidence that it will ever really improve. But so long as free meals are only provided to sone students, the rest of taxpayers will want to keep those costs as low as possible, so the quality will never improve. History tells us that there is more support for programs that benefit everyone, not just a subset of people.

I’m not looking for “free”, I’d just rather pay for better school lunches through higher taxes than on a daily basis. There’s a lot of wasted costs in administering the free lunch program too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am hopeful that MCPS will find a way to keep it going, at least in some schools, sort of like their universal free breakfast. I teach in a focus school and so many of our non-FARMs families participated, and my own kids did too. It was just such a stress relief to not have to worry about packing three lunches every night or worry about the cost. And I think it was good for the kids to get served a lunch that might not be their favorite thing, but that's what's for lunch so eat it or don't.

All you have to do is pay for their school lunches. That's also stress-free, unless you're broke. Plenty of schools have high populations of FARMS kids. Those kids come from low-income families. That won't change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I worry most is that some FARM families may not realized they need to apply each year since last two years everyone received free lunches.

There’s always been a lot of families that don’t realize they’re eligible. We should really be doing free lunches for all students.

No, we shouldn’t. My kids don’t need it. We can afford food. Many can’t. Give them better food than the crap free for all.

This. My 2 cents for MCPS
- Increase the threshold for eligibility for FARMS. Make it multi-tiered based on student preference for payment. Some families don't want to take free food but won't mind a very subsidized payment.
- Improve food quality and make it more healthy
- Allow the community to sponsor meals.

I would gladly donate $$$ for the food program and I do not have students in MCPS anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I worry most is that some FARM families may not realized they need to apply each year since last two years everyone received free lunches.

There’s always been a lot of families that don’t realize they’re eligible. We should really be doing free lunches for all students.

No, we shouldn’t. My kids don’t need it. We can afford food. Many can’t. Give them better food than the crap free for all.

This. My 2 cents for MCPS
- Increase the threshold for eligibility for FARMS. Make it multi-tiered based on student preference for payment. Some families don't want to take free food but won't mind a very subsidized payment.
- Improve food quality and make it more healthy
- Allow the community to sponsor meals.

I would gladly donate $$$ for the food program and I do not have students in MCPS anymore.

FARMS is a federal program. MCPS does not make the rules.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I worry most is that some FARM families may not realized they need to apply each year since last two years everyone received free lunches.

There’s always been a lot of families that don’t realize they’re eligible. We should really be doing free lunches for all students.

No, we shouldn’t. My kids don’t need it. We can afford food. Many can’t. Give them better food than the crap free for all.

This. My 2 cents for MCPS
- Increase the threshold for eligibility for FARMS. Make it multi-tiered based on student preference for payment. Some families don't want to take free food but won't mind a very subsidized payment.
- Improve food quality and make it more healthy
- Allow the community to sponsor meals.

I would gladly donate $$$ for the food program and I do not have students in MCPS anymore.

Mcps has a donation program. Stop with the fake concern.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I worry most is that some FARM families may not realized they need to apply each year since last two years everyone received free lunches.

There’s always been a lot of families that don’t realize they’re eligible. We should really be doing free lunches for all students.

No, we shouldn’t. My kids don’t need it. We can afford food. Many can’t. Give them better food than the crap free for all.

This. My 2 cents for MCPS
- Increase the threshold for eligibility for FARMS. Make it multi-tiered based on student preference for payment. Some families don't want to take free food but won't mind a very subsidized payment.
- Improve food quality and make it more healthy
- Allow the community to sponsor meals.

I would gladly donate $$$ for the food program and I do not have students in MCPS anymore.

Mcps has a donation program. Stop with the fake concern.

NP. Is this true? I had never heard of a donation program. Would you mind linking to this?

[Anonymous]

I do lunch duty in an elementary school and the amount of food that I saw go to waste this year was absolutely appalling! At least 50% of most kid's lunches ended up in the trash, and for many that number was more like 80%. My school has a FARMS rate of about 30%, but many more kids would order the (free) school lunch. As a taxpayer, I don't feel like my money should be used to provide a free lunch to kids whose families are able to afford trips to Europe! I understand that it's easier for parents to not have to pack a lunch, but free lunches should be for the kids who really need it due to economic reasons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hopeful that MCPS will find a way to keep it going, at least in some schools, sort of like their universal free breakfast. I teach in a focus school and so many of our non-FARMs families participated, and my own kids did too. It was just such a stress relief to not have to worry about packing three lunches every night or worry about the cost. And I think it was good for the kids to get served a lunch that might not be their favorite thing, but that's what's for lunch so eat it or don't.

Its not free though. Someone (Tax payers) is paying for it and they worry about the cost and tax rates going up

It was an extra, temporary, federal subsidy

Still tax payers are paying for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do lunch duty in an elementary school and the amount of food that I saw go to waste this year was absolutely appalling! At least 50% of most kid's lunches ended up in the trash, and for many that number was more like 80%. My school has a FARMS rate of about 30%, but many more kids would order the (free) school lunch. As a taxpayer, I don't feel like my money should be used to provide a free lunch to kids whose families are able to afford trips to Europe! I understand that it's easier for parents to not have to pack a lunch, but free lunches should be for the kids who really need it due to economic reasons.

These programs benefits only a few and vast majority of money is wasted. Look at who is contracted to supply, package and serve food.. you will know more.

[Anonymous]

These kind of programs significantly contributed to the inflation that we are facing now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do lunch duty in an elementary school and the amount of food that I saw go to waste this year was absolutely appalling! At least 50% of most kid's lunches ended up in the trash, and for many that number was more like 80%. My school has a FARMS rate of about 30%, but many more kids would order the (free) school lunch. As a taxpayer, I don't feel like my money should be used to provide a free lunch to kids whose families are able to afford trips to Europe! I understand that it's easier for parents to not have to pack a lunch, but free lunches should be for the kids who really need it due to economic reasons.

Most of the school lunches are best meant for farm animals, no pun intended. It literally tastes like feed, not food. Really nasty. Even growing, hungry kids turn it down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These kind of programs significantly contributed to the inflation that we are facing now.

Ha ha, LOL. Worldwide inflation caused by MCPS lunches. LOL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These kind of programs significantly contributed to the inflation that we are facing now.

Ha ha, LOL. Worldwide inflation caused by MCPS lunches. LOL.

Actually, the PP is correct. Ha ha, LOL.

Educate yourself on how inflation works and the causes of inflation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These kind of programs significantly contributed to the inflation that we are facing now.

Ha ha, LOL. Worldwide inflation caused by MCPS lunches. LOL.

Actually, the PP is correct. Ha ha, LOL.

Educate yourself on how inflation works and the causes of inflation.

You’re a fool and have no concept of macro economics

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do lunch duty in an elementary school and the amount of food that I saw go to waste this year was absolutely appalling! At least 50% of most kid's lunches ended up in the trash, and for many that number was more like 80%. My school has a FARMS rate of about 30%, but many more kids would order the (free) school lunch. As a taxpayer, I don't feel like my money should be used to provide a free lunch to kids whose families are able to afford trips to Europe! I understand that it's easier for parents to not have to pack a lunch, but free lunches should be for the kids who really need it due to economic reasons.

This exactly. I have seen the same.

And yes, it’s easier to have your kid buy lunch than it is to pack it. But, the people who can afford to pay for it, should do so. The parents in Potomac, who are vacationing in Europe and live in multi-million dollar homes need to pay for the convenience of school lunch (if they choose to utilize that option).