Why are GOP governors taking food out of children’s mouths?
In FERN’s latest story, published with Mother Jones, Bryce Covert explores why 15 states are refusing to participate in Summer EBT, a new federal program that gives poor families with children money for groceries during the summer when they can’t get meals at school.
Why universal free school meals matter
For the first two years of the pandemic, there was such a thing as a free lunch — for public school kids, at least. To blunt a spike in hunger caused by job losses and school closures, the federal government made school meals free, even available as ‘grab and go,’ for virtually all children. But Republicans blocked a renewal of the program last spring, accusing Democrats of exploiting emergency measures to enact lasting changes. (No paywall)
Nutritional quality of school food surges under 2010 reforms
With Congress in the early stages of updating child nutrition programs costing $30 billion a year, researchers say the nutritional quality of school meals increased by more than 40 percent following a 2010 mandate to serve healthier food. The first comprehensive study of the 2010 reforms also found that student participation rates were highest in the schools that served higher-quality meals.