One in six kids in North Carolina goes hungry – and hungry kids can't learn. This means that many of our children are falling behind in school as well as suffering in other ways.
Fortunately, state lawmakers, prominently including Sen. Amy Galey, took action in the latest legislative session to help. North Carolina made progress, and our kids are counting on us to keep doing so until school meals are available to all students in North Carolina at no cost to their families.
The problem is significant. As heartrending as our statewide hunger rate is, it’s even worse in rural North Carolina, where one in three kids regularly goes hungry.
Research shows that children who don't have access to regular, nutritious meals are less able to focus, more likely to be sick and miss school, and more likely to engage in disruptive behavior.
But what’s a hardworking family to do if household budget pressures are such that it cannot provide regular meals and continue to make ends meet? Something has to give, and oftentimes that means families can’t afford school meals. During the 2022-23 academic year, North Carolina saw school meal debt soar to an all time high of more than $3 million.
Sen. Galey and other lawmakers recognized the debt issue and acted. The budget prohibits schools from withholding student records or keeping students from participating in graduation due to school meal debt.
But debt is just the tip of the iceberg. The issue of school nutrition goes deeper. Fortunately, so does the action taken by our legislature.
The state budget permanently eliminates the reduced-priced lunch co-pay. This means that students who qualify for reduced-price meals will now permanently receive both breakfast and lunch at school at no cost to their families.
Sen. Galey and other elected officials took important steps this session. And because of their overall stewardship of the state, we know that North Carolina has the resources to continue on this important journey.
