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Guilford County School System Opts Out Of Federal Free Lunch Program

KERI BROWN/WFDD

The Guilford County School District will stop offering free universal lunch and breakfast at several of its schools. The changes will take effect this fall.

The district is opting out of a federal program called the Community Eligibility Provision, (CEP).  The program provides funding to offer meals for all students at schools in low-income areas.

District officials say the number of students identified through CEP has been declining. It's a concern because CEP can be a factor in Title 1 funding, another federal program, which provides money to schools with high percentages of children living in poverty.

“We've seen that, not just in Guilford County, but across the state and across the nation,” says Angie Henry, chief financial officer with the school system. “We don't know if that's because the economy is getting better and families are coming out of poverty, or if it's because how families qualify for services has changed, and there is also some concern that undocumented families are unwilling right now in the current environment to file for any services for support."

Currently, 58 Guilford County schools participate in the CEP program. But now families will have to apply to receive the meals.

School officials say the change will help them identify more students facing poverty, so they can reallocate funds for additional services to meet students' needs.

“We are doing this because it will give us an accurate count of students in poverty in our district, which right now we just don't have," she says.

Families that receive food stamps, or similar forms of government assistance don't have to fill out the application form.

“We are trying to make the application as easy as possible,” says Henry. “There will be a link on our webpage and app, and they will be sent home with students. It's important for us as a district to remove any barriers. It will be available in different languages as well.”

Henry says the district has created more programs to reach kids throughout the year. Guilford County Schools recently expanded its snack and summer meals program. She says school leaders will also consider other ways to offer universal meals in a small number of schools.

Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news.

 

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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