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School lunch debt is hurting Kansas kids

The total lunch debt that students have accumulated in Kansas climbed to more than $23 million last year. Many school districts have policies that single out kids when they can’t afford to pay, but that can hurt families. Plus: Pumpkin pie or sweet potato pie for Thanksgiving?

School lunch debt is climbing in Kansas, and advocates are pushing to make sure children don't go hungry at school. Many school districts have policies that single out kids when they can't afford to pay for lunch. A new report shows that this can hurt families, even if policies aren't strictly enforced. Suzanne Perez from the Kansas News Service brings us that story

Are you serving pumpkin or sweet potato pie this Thanksgiving? A look at the history and cultural ties that influence why Americans may prefer one or the other. Chad Davis with Harvest Public Media has more on that.

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Anna Schmidt is the fall 2023 intern for KCUR Studios. She recently graduated from Kansas State University, where she was the Opinions Desk Editor for the Collegian student newspaper and took over the role of podcast host. You can email her at anna.schmidt@kcur.org.
As an on-demand producer, I am focused on using my skills and experiences across multiple digital applications, platforms and media fields to create community focused audio, video and on-demand products for KCUR Studios. The media that I produce aims to inform, entertain and connect with the Kansas City metro area as we continue to learn from each other. Email me at byronlove@kcur.org.
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