By Briana Vannozzi
Correspondent
No one is fumbling around for money or pulling out a brown paper bag in this cafeteria. Every single student at Malcolm X Shabazz High School in Newark receives a free meal.
“This new program eliminates the need to fill out an application or for parents to divulge any income guidelines, so all kids can eat breakfast and lunch for free,” said Vice Principal Alatarik White.
Thirty-two school districts around the state are using a provision in the federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. It subsidizes the two free meals for all students, regardless of their family’s income level. According to the Department of Agriculture, which oversees the program, “schools must have a very high percentages of students certified eligible for free meals through other federal assistance programs. Eligible schools will choose to participate only if it is financially viable for them.”
“I believe there’s a percentage of these kids who take advantage of the program, where this is the healthiest meal they’re gonna get throughout the day,” White said.
Nineteen Newark schools are eligible, which means over 40 percent of students are identified as in need.
“We noticed kids were coming to school, to classrooms hungry. They were always asking, ‘When is lunch time?’” relayed Madeline Roman, principal at School 15 in Paterson.
In Paterson, School 15’s principal says they serve breakfast in the classroom after the morning bell to make sure everyone eats.
“One of the problems is especially with breakfast was we serve it at 7:45 in the morning and sometimes parents couldn’t bring their children,” she said.
Participating schools are reimbursed with federal money. For a district like Paterson, where the food budget tops $5 million, every school qualifies — all 29,000 students.
“Students are focusing more on the instructions and on the learning. They’re not asking, ‘When is lunchtime?’ They seem to be more attentive doing more work,” said Roman.
Talk to district officials and they’ll tell you this free meal program isn’t just about providing students with something nutritious to eat during the day. It also increases the chances of them showing up for school and showing up on time.
“The more kids we have coming to school eating breakfast, the less kids you have taking time off being tardy,” White said.
The Department of Agriculture expects more eligible districts will be rolling out the program in the next school year.