Growing program provides more students access to school meals

August 9, 2024

Thousands of Lincoln Public Schools students will have access to free meals for the 2024-25 school year through the expansion of a federal breakfast and lunch program. 
 
LPS will add 15 schools to the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) program this fall. The CEP is available through the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and National School Breakfast Program (NSBP). It allows schools identified in communities with more need to offer nutritious meals free of charge to all children in the school.
 
Twenty-three LPS sites will participate in the program during the 2024-2025 school year. Belmont, Elliott, Everett, Clinton, Huntington, Hartley, McPhee and West Lincoln elementary schools were previously enrolled. Arnold, Brownell, Campbell, Lakeview, Norwood Park, Pershing, Prescott, Randolph, Riley and Saratoga elementary schools and Culler, Dawes, Goodrich, Lefler and Park middle schools will be added this year.
 
LPS Director of Nutrition Services Andrew Ashelford said the CEP expansion aligns with the school district’s goal of ensuring student wellbeing and outcomes. Approximately 3,500 children received meals through the CEP program at LPS last year. That number will jump to 12,000 students this fall.
 
“Our biggest goal is making sure all kids are getting healthy meals and a good amount of food,” Ashelford said. “We want them to excel in the classroom, and the CEP program will help them feel less stressed when it comes to food. They won’t have to worry about whether they’ll be able to afford a healthy meal.”
 
LPS will serve breakfast and lunch at no cost to students in the 23 CEP-eligible schools. Extra items such as milk for a sack lunch brought from home or second helpings of food items will be charged at regular prices. The USDA will reimburse LPS for the cost of the CEP-eligible meals after the food is served to students.

Ashelford said he believes the CEP program will help students, families and LPS employees. The school district will process less paperwork, as individual applications for free-and-reduced-price meals will no longer be necessary at the 23 schools. Because of the program, LPS will remove unpaid meal balances for CEP students and families.

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) allowed the USDA to begin phasing in the meal program in 2011-12. Illinois, Kentucky and Michigan were the first three states eligible for CEP services.
 
USDA administrators found the program significantly increased student participation in breakfast and lunch programs at participating schools in those states. The USDA began offering the CEP program nationwide in July 2014.
 
Ashelford began working with other LPS leaders this past winter to see if it would be possible to expand CEP coverage. They felt the program had been successful at the eight original schools and were hoping to add as many buildings as possible.
 
CEP administrators use a detailed formula to determine what schools are eligible for the national program. The formula includes school data about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance Program for Needy Families (TANF) and Medicaid. They use this information to calculate the percentage of families who would be categorically eligible for free-and-reduced-price meals.
 
Ashelford said families who have one student enrolled at a CEP school and another student at a non-CEP school will need to fill out the application for free-and-reduced-price meals. The CEP program is school-based instead of individual-based, so a form would need to be completed for the student taking classes at the non-CEP school.

Nutrition Services encourages families who have all students enrolled at non-CEP schools to fill out the free-and-reduced-price meal form. Eligible families must submit a new application for 2024-25, as previous applications expire on June 30 each year.
 
Ashelford said he is excited about the many ways CEP meals will support LPS students.
 
“We know students who are fed nutritious food see a lot of benefits with their entire wellbeing, so this is something we know will help kids,” Ashelford said.

Visit our Nutrition Services department website at https://home.lps.org/ns to learn more about the CEP program and free and reduced meals. 

The Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools has set up a fund to help minimize lunch debt for LPS families. You can learn more about how to support this effort by visiting the Foundation's website. 

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