Free School Lunch?
By Valentina Omotosho ('23)
For most of North Rockland High School's history, students have had to to pay for school lunches (except for students who were eligible for the NY State free or reduced meal program). According to News10NBC, "During the pandemic, districts across the nation, including New York were given a waiver to give free lunch to all students regardless of income." However, due to recent changes in the school lunch system, which provided free lunches for all in light of the pandemic, a debate has surfaced about whether students should now be required to pay for school lunches since the pandemic has practically ended.
This year at NRHS, many students will have to pay for meals again, except for those who were previously offered free or reduced lunch. However, I propose students who did not receive free or reduced lunch preceding the pandemic should be required to pay less for their lunches now.
Photo courtesy of CDC
Photo courtesy of Food Corps
FREE BREAKFAST: The school offers free breakfast to all students regardless of their financial standing. The entire provision of free breakfast is a great opportunity all students at the high school are blessed with, since breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Therefore, all students must continue to have access to it. According to the North Rockland Central School District website, "It has been proven that students need good nutrition to feed their minds and bodies to enable them to learn while in school. Our goal is to provide high quality, safe, and healthy meals to every student."
THE PANDEMIC: During the pandemic there was a huge surge in the price of goods and services, leading to a period of inflation and stagnating economic growth. The decrease in the state of the economy has impacted all families regardless of their financial status. Families with average or low incomes suffered a reduction in earnings in the workplace. Similarly, families with moderate to high incomes have also suffered a decrease in revenue. This all shows that many NR families would benefit from a free or reduced lunch option.
Photo courtesy of The New York Times
Photo courtesy of Hunger Solutions NY
BOOST STUDENTS' DIET: Although North Rockland provides a full, free breakfast for students, many do not get the opportunity to grab it and go in the morning (and some just decide to not get it at all for various reasons). This is sometimes due to excessive traffic in the morning. Additionally, many upperclassmen have schedules that start after period one, so they typically miss breakfast hours.
In contrast, NR's lunch periods, currently scheduled from 4th to 7th period, are a time most students are in the building, making lunch service a more accessible mealtime.
According to its website, "the mission of NRCSD Food Services is to provide high quality, nutritionally sound food service programs that support student learning." Moreover, the school recently upgraded the lunch offerings a few years ago, since they now strive to offer a balanced diet every meal, be it encouraging students to have fruit or milk with their lunch or serving all lunches with green vegetables.
Overall, NR students are extremely busy and occupied with their day-to-day activities as we all strive to live with the Raider Pride, be it taking multiple electives and classes or participating in numerous clubs/activities. A boost for energy such as a meal during lunch is most definitely appreciated by students, as they get to be re-energized and food simply enhances the mood of most students. School meals should therefore be made more accessible by offering free or reduced lunches to all students regardless of their family's socioeconomic status.
Cover photo courtesy of WGBH
Banner photo courtesy of waukeeschools.org