Anonymous wrote:

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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.

We should for need not kids who live in million dollar homes.

There's a point where it costs less to feed everybody than to figure out who is poor enough and only feed them. That's why some schools have free breakfast for all students, even the rich ones.

Baltimore City schools has free breakfast and lunch for everyone. No forms to fill out. The only problem with this is the way they estimate poverty now. Instead of those income eligibility forms, they now use food stamp info. The problem with that is that undocumented people can't get food stamps so it makes the poverty rate seem a lot lower than it really is. Lower poverty rate means less funding for schools.

The data that you are referring to only serves as one of four datasets. Plus children of the undocumented are eligible for food stamps if they are born here.
https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidance/survey-data-collection.html

Would you apply for food stamps if you were illegal? Come on. Think! Even if their kids were born here, most illegal immigrants are not going to apply. They are scared. When illegal immigrants are arrested in my school's neighborhood, kids don't show up to school for a while. Their parents won't send them on field trips either. They won't allow them to be bussed to other schools for special programs.

Anonymous wrote:My kid throws away the veggie and sometimes fruit from the school lunch because he is a picky eater. That is a waste! He is a picky eater. I am debating how complicated & time consuming is that if my kid buy lunch at school? They have 30 min lunch break only. My kid prefer me to pack lunch, but sometimes I want a break.

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Anonymous wrote:There is free lunch for income eligible.

The eligibility requirements are shockingly low (or high?) for this area. A family of four has to be below $48,000 annually to qualify. I cannot imagine raising 2 (or 3) children on anywhere close to that amount.

There are also plenty of other food programs including WIC, Food Stamps, and free food pick ups. This isn't the only free lunch program. There is a huge difference between need and want.

And then there's "greatly improves quality of life by reducing parental stress and costs next to nothing compared to the benefits."

If buying or packing a lunch is too difficult don’t have kids or have your nanny or delivery service do it. Or, just pay.

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:There is SO much wasted food with the free lunches. The kids throw away an enormous amount of food daily. Breakfast and lunch. It is so incredibly wasteful.

Waste or hungry kids. Not sure how to avoid both.

But even the kids who truly need the free lunches are throwing it away because it's that bad. Better for people like me and you who can afford to pay for lunches so the quality is higher and the kids who are on FARM to get it free because they need it.

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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.

We should for need not kids who live in million dollar homes.

There's a point where it costs less to feed everybody than to figure out who is poor enough and only feed them. That's why some schools have free breakfast for all students, even the rich ones.

Baltimore City schools has free breakfast and lunch for everyone. No forms to fill out. The only problem with this is the way they estimate poverty now. Instead of those income eligibility forms, they now use food stamp info. The problem with that is that undocumented people can't get food stamps so it makes the poverty rate seem a lot lower than it really is. Lower poverty rate means less funding for schools.

The data that you are referring to only serves as one of four datasets. Plus children of the undocumented are eligible for food stamps if they are born here.
https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidance/survey-data-collection.html

Would you apply for food stamps if you were illegal? Come on. Think! Even if their kids were born here, most illegal immigrants are not going to apply. They are scared. When illegal immigrants are arrested in my school's neighborhood, kids don't show up to school for a while. Their parents won't send them on field trips either. They won't allow them to be bussed to other schools for special programs.

Are you kidding? Are you new to MCPS?

Undocumented families absolutely do apply for free food programs.

They don't in my district.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is SO much wasted food with the free lunches. The kids throw away an enormous amount of food daily. Breakfast and lunch. It is so incredibly wasteful.

Waste or hungry kids. Not sure how to avoid both.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

We should for need not kids who live in million dollar homes.

There's a point where it costs less to feed everybody than to figure out who is poor enough and only feed them. That's why some schools have free breakfast for all students, even the rich ones.

Baltimore City schools has free breakfast and lunch for everyone. No forms to fill out. The only problem with this is the way they estimate poverty now. Instead of those income eligibility forms, they now use food stamp info. The problem with that is that undocumented people can't get food stamps so it makes the poverty rate seem a lot lower than it really is. Lower poverty rate means less funding for schools.

The data that you are referring to only serves as one of four datasets. Plus children of the undocumented are eligible for food stamps if they are born here.
https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidance/survey-data-collection.html

Would you apply for food stamps if you were illegal? Come on. Think! Even if their kids were born here, most illegal immigrants are not going to apply. They are scared. When illegal immigrants are arrested in my school's neighborhood, kids don't show up to school for a while. Their parents won't send them on field trips either. They won't allow them to be bussed to other schools for special programs.

Are you kidding? Are you new to MCPS?

Undocumented families absolutely do apply for free food programs.

Anonymous wrote:There is SO much wasted food with the free lunches. The kids throw away an enormous amount of food daily. Breakfast and lunch. It is so incredibly wasteful.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

We should for need not kids who live in million dollar homes.

There's a point where it costs less to feed everybody than to figure out who is poor enough and only feed them. That's why some schools have free breakfast for all students, even the rich ones.

Baltimore City schools has free breakfast and lunch for everyone. No forms to fill out. The only problem with this is the way they estimate poverty now. Instead of those income eligibility forms, they now use food stamp info. The problem with that is that undocumented people can't get food stamps so it makes the poverty rate seem a lot lower than it really is. Lower poverty rate means less funding for schools.

The data that you are referring to only serves as one of four datasets. Plus children of the undocumented are eligible for food stamps if they are born here.
https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidance/survey-data-collection.html

Would you apply for food stamps if you were illegal? Come on. Think! Even if their kids were born here, most illegal immigrants are not going to apply. They are scared. When illegal immigrants are arrested in my school's neighborhood, kids don't show up to school for a while. Their parents won't send them on field trips either. They won't allow them to be bussed to other schools for special programs.

Anonymous wrote:The good part is that mcps subsidized the free meals by selling to the paying kids. When no one was paying they were limited to the government subsidized amount for all. Lunches should improve a bit.

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.

Anonymous wrote:

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.

We should for need not kids who live in million dollar homes.

There's a point where it costs less to feed everybody than to figure out who is poor enough and only feed them. That's why some schools have free breakfast for all students, even the rich ones.

Baltimore City schools has free breakfast and lunch for everyone. No forms to fill out. The only problem with this is the way they estimate poverty now. Instead of those income eligibility forms, they now use food stamp info. The problem with that is that undocumented people can't get food stamps so it makes the poverty rate seem a lot lower than it really is. Lower poverty rate means less funding for schools.

The data that you are referring to only serves as one of four datasets. Plus children of the undocumented are eligible for food stamps if they are born here.
https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidance/survey-data-collection.html

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is free lunch for income eligible.

The eligibility requirements are shockingly low (or high?) for this area. A family of four has to be below $48,000 annually to qualify. I cannot imagine raising 2 (or 3) children on anywhere close to that amount.

and yet there are MCPS schools where 80 percent of the students ARE eligible.