For kids who receive school meals, the summer months can be the hungriest time of year. This year promises to be different, thanks to newly expanded guidelines that will give school districts and community organizations the flexibility to offer non-congregate meal service in many more rural communities. To support the rollout of this effort, No Kid Hungry Louisiana recently announced $160,000 in grants to help ten organizations across the state reach even more kids with summer meals.
For many children, free and reduced price school meals can be a lifeline that ensures reliable access to nutrition during the school year. When schools close for the summer, however, these meals disappear and families struggle from the strain on already-tight budgets. This can be particularly true for rural families.
In a recent No Kid Hungry survey of rural families, parents reported on the unique hardships they faced during the summer when school is out. More than half of rural families say they don’t have enough money for food during the summer. Over 80% spend more on groceries when their children are out of school for the summer–an average of $168 more each month.
Summer meal programs were designed to provide healthy meals during summer vacation, but have historically only reached a fraction of the kids who need them due to barriers like transportation, fuel costs, extreme weather and parent’s work schedules. In rural areas, where kids often live many miles from their closest meal site, these challenges have been particularly stark.
“There’s long been a huge gap between the number of kids getting meals in the summertime and the kids who really need them – particularly in rural communities. New flexibilities for summer meals in rural communities means that no longer has to be the case,” said Rhonda Jackson, No Kid Hungry Louisiana director. “We’re excited to support these schools and community groups in offering summer meals in ways that work for their community – like allowing families to pick up multiple meals at a time or even offering home delivery.”
No Kid Hungry’s grant funding supports the adaptations needed to reach as many kids as possible with summer meals, including meal delivery, refrigeration and transportation costs. The following school districts and community organizations received grants in Louisiana:
- Avoyelles Parish School Board
- Bossier Parish Schools
- Campti Community Development Center
- The Diocese of Baton Rouge Child Nutrition Program
- The Food Bank of Central Louisiana, Inc.
- Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank
- Pointe Coupee Parish School Board
- St. Landry Parish School Board
- Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana
- West Feliciana Parish School Board
No Kid Hungry is helping families find summer meals near them through our Free Meals Finder map and texting hotline. Parents and caregivers can text the word “FOOD” (or “COMIDA”) to 304-304 to find sites in their neighborhood.
We are also excited to announce support for school breakfast programs through the provision of breakfast grants. No Kid Hungry Louisiana made seven grants totaling over $106,000 in support of school breakfast programs in the last half of the 2023-24 school year. The recipients of those grants include:
- Caddo Public Parish Schools (which received two separate grants)
- The Einstein Group, Inc.
- NOLA Public Schools
- St. Martin Parish
- Terrebonne Parish School District
- Zachary Community School District
This upcoming school year we will continue to offer technical assistance to help schools increase breakfast participation. Our support will include the creation and implementation of alternative breakfast models to ensure all students have access to a nutritious start to their day.