Our school starting doing a prepay lunch thing. You could purchase up to 2 weeks worth of lunches. The teachers received the tickets for the kids in their class and handed them out every day when the kids lined up for lunch. All the tickets were the same, regardless of if you paid full price, reduced, or free. This has worked out great!

As for when kids come to school without money for lunch, we pretty much handle it the same as everyone else...we give the kids a full lunch, and a note gets sent home.

OK. I am not over CA saying no money, no lunch. Shawn, what is the Governator's stand on this issue. A few years ago I remember a big tadoo over some kind of law that would allow illegal immigrants to get public education at the cost of tax payers. It had a number in it. Now they say let them starve? Enlighten me. Perhaps I am reading this wrong.

We are a Title I district. We too should have more that are on free or reduced but parents are too embarrassed. I do tell some that it helps with grants and funds. I'd like to announce it with a megaphone sometimes. Especially the year the other school got an extra Math teacher because their free/reduced #s were so high. My kids school could have benefitted from that too.

Our kitchen managers are responsible for stretching their money. One of the managers usually has a surplus at the end of the year. That money then goes to the other schools in our district who fell short on their budget. I am really not thrilled with that rule. My point is you may want to find out if you district does something similiar that could help out these kids. Years ago when I first started working I did lunch duty I had a hard time when kids were not full. Sadly school lunches are the only meals that some children receive.

If you are in this much trouble now surely the "higher ups" could see fit to do something.

I am surprised that this falls so heavy on your group, in our school this is handled by the kitchen manager, food service program. I have heard that there are pto's like yours that may put in some money for the year, it seems like your parents are truly abusing the system. Like soemone else said it is like a law that says kids can't go without, so how is it that your group is picking up the tab and your food service program is not.I would go higher up with this, start with your principal, I can see some forgetting but in that case at our school they will receive a phone call home saying they owe $.If they can't afford it then it is up to your district to help them find a way to. Our principal has actually helped parents fill out that paperwork!

[ 11-01-2005, 06:44 AM: Message edited by: pals ]

I believe that's true (Title I, i think and other Fed programs as JHB said) unfortunately the more the better (funds given to school and district) also a lot of grants I've proposed be it Campus Beautification, Garden, Computers, Books, Parent, Bullying and Repsect; a lot of them want racial and free/ reduced lunch ratios because theyy give more to 'ecomomically disadvantaged students schools')

I agree that the Principal ought to do some followup about the Free and Reduced Lunch Program.

This year at Open House our Principal made a wonderful, very impassioned speach about applying for Free and Reduced Lunch.

He urged anyone who even thought they might qualify to fill out the form. He stressed that the program exists to be used and we don't want any child not eating or a family struggling to provide lunch.

Additionally, he stressed that many extra programs and benefits the school can receive are based on the number of children who qualify for for Free and Reduced Lunch. So parents who qualify help not only themselves, but the school as a whole.

There are still those who won't apply, but I think he got some to consider it in a new light.

We give the cafeteria a small amount each year even though 53% of our students are free/ reduced lunches.

Our CA Dept of Ed told the lunrooms No $$$, No lunch, so we have upped th amount this year slightly.