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Written by Alexis Dehner and Audrey Frazier 9/18/20
Free at Last: USDA Relieves Families from Paying for Lunches
Free at Last: USDA Relieves Families from Paying for Lunches
¨ I have started getting school lunch more,¨ stated Emily Murray, a freshman at Cranberry Jr./Sr. High School.
The coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted the financial state of many families of students at Cranberry High School. This has led to the USDA waiving fees of student lunches.
The USDA was responsible for the pick-up lunches received by many students during the pandemic closing of schools; the act allowing schools to do this has been extended until December 31, 2020.
Because of this, the cafeteria has been required to feed a higher percentage of the student body.
¨We are not cutting the options,¨ stated Kim Daugherty, Food Service Director of Cranberry Area School District.
Daugherty hopes to continue to provide students with many healthy lunch and breakfast options. The food service staff have been working to fulfill this wish. This being said, they need the help of the student body.
Students will have free lunches from now until the end of December at Cranberry High School. (Photographed by Gabe Dresbach)
With social distancing guidelines being adhered to, the amount of students per lunch has been substantially decreased, leading to more lunch periods being needed. This has brought up the challenge of scheduling lunches closer together, thus decreasing the amount of preparation time between lunches.
Daugherty and other Cranberry administrators have begun asking students to pre-order their lunches during homeroom so that planning can be more accurate.
“We hope to have the same options for last lunch as we do for the first lunch,” Daugherty stated.
WIth this being said, Daugherty has been ordering food as often as possible, but due to the safety of students, many schools are beginning to only offer prepackaged options. This has lead to foods such as “Smuckers Uncrustable” peanut butter and jelly sandwiches becoming more and more difficult to find.
But, above all, Daugherty says the safety of students and staff is of utmost importance to her. One thing she has done to protect the students and staff include using only disposable utensils and trays. This limits the contact between students and cafeteria staff.
Going forward, Cranberry Area School District will do their best to continue protecting students from exposure to COVID-19 while providing the highest quality meals to students.
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