school lunch

Free school lunch is a life-changing resource for kids in Kansas City. But for many families, potential federal budget cuts threaten to take the vital service away.

School nutrition teams worry their jobs could get harder as the Trump administration floats budget cuts that could gut their ability to offer free meals, even as they face rising prices for already-costly food and equipment.

The cancellation of two programs will affect more than $1 billion in expected funding this year. Food advocates worry the cuts are coming when other federal food programs are at risk.

The potential cut to a federal meal program for high-need school districts would result in about 900,000 students in the Midwest and Great Plains losing free school breakfasts and lunches.

Students in metro school districts owe thousands more dollars in school lunch debt as families continue to financially recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. In some districts, debt is even higher than last year.

New rules from the Biden administration will force most Kansas nursing homes to hire more staff, and owners aren’t happy. Plus: The USDA's new program SUN Bucks doles out $40 per month over the summer for each eligible child. However, 13 states turned down the funding.

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?

The total lunch debt 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, and a new report shows that can hurt families, even if those policies aren’t strictly enforced.

The report follows the end of the free federal school meals program, which paid for breakfast and lunch for students at all income levels from March 2020 through June 2022. Since the program ended, families in Kansas have experienced a six-fold increase in school meal debt.

A change in USDA policy will make it easier for schools to offer free meals to all students, but they will still have to pay for part of the cost. As a result, many Missouri districts will likely say no to the offer.

All students received free school meals during the pandemic. That ended after the 2021-22 school year, but several states in the Midwest have expanded access to school meals this school year.

Kansas City schools have seen student lunch debt soar since a pandemic-era universal free lunch program expired last fall. Now, there’s a push to make cafeterias welcoming for all students. Plus: Kansas teachers say student behavior has gotten much worse since the COVID pandemic.