School meals are as important to learning as textbooks and teachers, but federal funding that provided free school meals to all students for the past two years has ended. This school year, only students from families who apply for and qualify will receive free school meals.

The end of federal support will be especially difficult for families who fall just outside the USDA’s income-eligibility guidelines. The past two years have shown us how students and educators benefit when school meals are free for all kids. School meals reduce childhood hunger, decrease childhood obesity, support learning, and contribute to positive mental and physical health. With the challenges of the pandemic persisting and families facing higher costs in the grocery stores and at the gas pump, now is not the time to take a step backwards.

The School Nutrition Association of Pennsylvania commends the State Senate Education Committee, specifically Sens. Lindsey Williams, Jim Brewster, Carolyn Comitta and Tim Kearney, for their consistent efforts to support school meal programs and preserve access to nutritious meals for children in Pennsylvania. The committee recently forwarded a letter to Gov. Tom Wolf urging emergency action to temporarily cover the costs of school meals for the 2022-23 school year. This would be a wise investment in Pennsylvania’s most important resource — its children.

Megan Schaper

State College

The writer is president of the School Nutrition Association of Pennsylvania and food service director for State College Area School District.

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