A former school lunch worker is advocating for statewide improvements to school meal programs after attempting to warn officials about a hungry West Haven youngster.
According to her, it is important to provide free meals to all students, rather than just a select few.
Is this achievable and what steps are necessary to make it a reality?
According to a former lunch staff member, Gavin Peterson, a 12-year-old student, frequently showed up to school hungry. The worker and her colleagues noticed this, and she strongly believes that providing free meals could have had a significant impact on his well-being.
During the COVID pandemic, Jann Davis started working at Gavin’s elementary school where free meals were provided to all students.
“I believe it would have been immensely beneficial,” she expressed.
As Davis looked on, he observed Gavin rummaging through the garbage in search of food. This habit began when the free meal program came to an end, and families had to start paying for their meals.
Davis emphasized the importance of submitting an application to be eligible for reduced or free school lunches. “Applying is a requirement,” she stated.
In the fall of last year, Gavin was withdrawn from school for homeschooling due to conflicts with the family over his meals. This left Davis and her colleagues questioning whether Gavin was receiving adequate nutrition.
Davis agreed that if free meals were provided from the beginning, the issue could have been avoided.
2News contacted the State Board of Education to gain further insight into the school meal programs. Unfortunately, their staff was unavailable for comment on Tuesday. However, a legislator who has a strong commitment to tackling hunger-related problems shared their thoughts with 2News.
Former educator and State Representative, Dan Johnson, is a proponent of providing free meals for all students and has even sponsored legislation promoting school breakfast programs.
Johnson stated that based on their experience, children often arrive at school without having eaten.
According to Johnson, the decision to offer free school meals to all students is currently at the discretion of individual school districts and not a requirement mandated by the state. He clarified that although it is not a legislative obligation, the state allocates funds to the Department of Education, which in turn distributes it to schools.
Johnson suggested that more funds be allocated to these programs by the legislature. He also recommended that local districts be given the authority to make decisions regarding the allocation of these funds.
Expressing her readiness to take this issue to the lawmakers, Davis stated that there may be a significant number of students who come to school on an empty stomach, and it is our responsibility to ensure that they have access to a free meal. “They deserve a free meal,” Davis emphasized.
Although the State Board of Education did not provide any comments on the matter, they have expressed willingness to explore the possibility of offering free lunches to all students.
We plan to follow up with them at 2News to delve deeper into this crucial matter.