Lucy Gellman Photo
James Cramer and Billy Bromage spread the word about free summer meals in 2016.
Hungry public school students will get an extra daily meal, under a federally funded program that the Board of Education voted to expand next year.
At its regular meeting at L.W. Beecher School on Monday night, the school board signaled its support for adding supper service, meaning schools would offer three full meals a day. The board unanimously approved Mayor Toni Harp’s motion to expand the supper program to seven schools within the coming year year and conduct a feasibility study by next March for rolling it out districtwide.
Christopher Peak Photo
Alycia Santilli.
That could be a boon to the thousands of kids in the Elm City who aren’t getting proper nutrition at home, experts said. A recent study found that more than one in five New Haveners — 22 percent — is “food insecure.” That means at some point in the past month they missed a meal because they were unable to afford food. That figure compares to 12 percent statewide and 13 percent nationally.
The problems seem to be even worse for public school students, said Alycia Santilli, a Nathan Hale parent and the director of the Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE), which put out the study. The organization estimated that over half of the Elm City’s children — 56 percent — grow up in households that receive food stamps. And they found the lack of regular meals correlated with higher rates of diabetes and asthma in eighth-graders who reported food insecurity.
“We can do a lot more for not a lot of money,” Santilli argued during public comment. “We can feed a lot more children, and I think we have an obligation to do that.”
Currently, only three schools offer supper: Clemente, Davis and Co-Op. Another 23 schools offer a snack after school instead — a less “complicated” alternative, explained Will Clark, the district’s chief operating officer.
Harp said that the school board needed to take leadership in making schools serve supper, even though it’s tougher to implement. “Often times, it’s easier to do the lesser thing. If I had to pass out snacks in a box, that might be easier than doing a supper,” she said. “But we have poor kids in our town that don’t get adequate food, and we have a way to give it to them.”
She added that any funding challenges the supper expansion might cause would be worth it. “Are we going to have fiscal issues this year? Yes, we are. But I’d rather have fiscal issues than knowing we have hunger and that we could have reimbursed for and didn’t do it.”
Administered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the feds reimburse for supper at a rate of up to $3.23 per meal for impoverished children. The supper must be offered in a group setting without charge to the parents.
To qualify for funds, schools have to follow a number of regulations. For one, the evening meal has to be tied to some kind of constructive after-school activity. And the meal can only be served at schools where at least half the children in the surrounding attendance zone are poor enough to qualify for discounted meals,
A separate federally funded program also makes dinner available during the summer. This year, the school served 200,000 meals, although that total’s dropped from a high of 270,000 two years ago, pointed out Mark Firla, a volunteer for the New Haven Food Policy Council who argued the schools could do more to boost their numbers.
Fred Goodman.
During the summer, the school’s work is paired alongside an outreach campaign that includes door-knocking to inform neighbors about free meals and buses to some of the 87 sites, funded by a grant from the National League of Cities, said Billy Bromage, another Council volunteer. The Connecticut Food Bank also set up a mobile pantry at high-traffic locations.
“The lines do not end. The families are waiting an hour, sometimes two hours, in 80 or 90 degree weather to receive food,” said Fred Goodman, a program manager at the food bank. “There is a need.”
I know I will hear people tell me how cruel this is but ENOUGH already!!!!!!!!!!If you have free breakfast, lunch and dinner , free after school and before school care, you have section 8, food stamps, energy assistance then how are you providing for the children you keep making? Why are you not considered unfit and have your children taken away. Why is the lady or man next door who is funding all of these state and federal [programs that support your children not able to claim them on taxes? We have forgotten the addage of teach yours to fish so they can eat for a life time verses continuously giving them free meals. I commented on the article sever weeks back
http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/fair_haven_babies/
At what point is enough enough. This is beyond it appears that we have coddled a generation in to believing that it is their RIGHT to make children and everyone else will provide and care for them . First we did the breakfast program because a hungry child cant learn. I got that I understood it and I vehemently supported it. Then it was free lunch for all to reduce stigmatizing . emergencies etc but now dinner? You aren't spending a dime to feed house diaper your children but you make more? I am too thru. As much I believe in helping someone you gotta help yourself and instead we are just hindering adults from owning and taking responsibility for their own life choices. Soo sorry but I dont support this and I wish we could start acting like corporations who opt out of paying for insurance for employees for things they dont agree on and let us as tax payers start opting out of raising everyone else darn children.