In 1946 President Harry Truman approved the National School Lunch Act. This law provides free or low-cost, nutritional meals in education or childcare areas. This law has helped many students eat during the school days Unfortunately sometimes there are mix-ups and paperwork gets lost, like Caitlin Dolan from Cannonsburg. Her lunch was thrown away in front of all of her friends and schoolmates in the cafeteria because of an unpaid lunch from the former year. Later when she went home to her mom they had figured out the paperwork for her reduced price-free lunches had gotten lost. Caitlin was humiliated obviously. She is a perfect example of lunch shaming. A very real problem in many schools by cafeteria workers and students when a child …show more content…
doesn't have enough money or is exposed to being eligible for a free or reduced-price meal during the day. There is an uncountable amount of kids just like Caitlin in schools that get that kind of treatment, sometimes even worse. Instead of having a percentage of kids who have to pay and a percentage that doesn't, schools should provide free school meals for all the students. Giving the kids nutritionally balanced meals that are free would solve the major problems at school like lunch shaming. If kids are getting embarrassed during lunch because of shame eventually they will just stop trying to eat at school and that will be a whole separate problem in schools. Although giving free nutritional school meals to all students increases school district cost, it is an effective way to serve food because it fuels the students to learn more and erases the divide in the classroom. Providing K-12 free nutritional meals boosts students to learn more and get better grades due to the nutritional value of their foods. Having the option for students to get free meals helps with their grades. Kids that eat their meals during the day have more energy and mental awareness to do better in school because they can stay focused on the task at hand. When a student is hungry all day they can’t be focused on their school work and participating in class. Experts a part of the Philadelphia Inquirer state that the students that show fewer absences, better grades and less behavioral issues are the 50 percent of students that eat either breakfast or lunch with the free meal plan at school (EDITORIAL: The better, 2013). Students who are eligible for this program have the option to eat two free meals a day compared to the other kids who have the option to eat two meals but have to pay for it. When children want to eat meals at school is doesn't just help fuel their minds. It saves time in the morning for their home life. The kids that eat breakfast at school can sleep in a little longer, not run around in the morning to make sure they have time to eat. When the option is there and open to have a free meal at school kids will most likely take the option to be prepared for the day and ready to learn. Giving the students nutritional meals at school improves their grades but also improves their mental and physical health. Experts from nutrition group lobbies state that Mrs. Nece from a school in Iowa adds that most of her students never even saw a sliced pair until the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program at their school, and now the 31,600 students at her school all are eating fruits like pears, berries, pineapples and more (Nutrition group lobbies, 2007). To have mentally focused kids in the classroom is a major key to a successful learning experience. Having a free meal program for all the students would be giving these kids a chance to eat healthy and provide themselves with healthy options to eat. So that when they back into the classroom they are fed and ready to learn more information instead of being distracted by how hungry they are or how tired they are because the meal they ate wasn't healthy and slowed them down. Nutritional value in meals is more important during the school day than students think, and by giving them all the free healthy meals would make a difference in their school life because the vitamins and nutrition in the food will fuel them to take on the rest of the day with a sharp mind. On the other hand Kalb from the Miami Herald disagrees by saying, on a survey of 1,100 school districts students have been eating fewer school lunches due to student acceptance of the food. (Students eating fewer school lunches, 2016). When a change this large happens (switching to healthy foods instead of unhealthy) it's often very common for their to be a resistance of eating the lunch because kids aren't used to it. After time though at Burke County schools it was announced that the students are eating meals every day and enjoying them very much (Hamburger, 2014) The increase in academic performances and the decline in disciplinary problems that have been proven to be shown in school have everything to do with the nutritional free meals being served to the students. Many lunch programs at school involve paperwork, stamps or stickers to show that the kids need a free or reduced price lunch.
Having this type of system causes a class divide of students who are embarrassed because they need a free lunch. The division of kids cause issues like resentment among the other students who have to pay full price for their lunch, or causes embarrassment for the kids who can’t afford their lunch. According to CNN money, Many cities such as Chicago, Philadelphia and Dallas are trying to reduce the “stigma” that comes with getting a free meal by the school changing their prodigal like filling out paperwork and such (CNN money, 2015). These cities are making a difference in the schools by not letting the class divide of students become and issue. The kids who have to wear wristbands, get stamps, get sticker and are labeled for needing a free lunch is humiliating and unnecessary. Having kids all be provided with free meals will erase the division of the kids who are to humilated to get a free meal at school. If every student was able to have free food provided by the school no one would know who actually needs a free lunch. It also comes full circle with kids who are eating the free nutritious meals being fed to learn more. The more comfortable the kids are getting free meals the more likely they are to actually get one. When a child can’t afford a lunch during the school day it usually can cause issues in the cafeteria due to the embarrassment of the student. The experts from nutrition group lobbies observe that almost 60 percent of lunches are served with the reduced price or free lunch program, and only 9 percent of that is reduced price (Nutrition group lobbies). With that information it's understandable that there is a whole nother 30 percent of students not getting a free lunch. Instead of excluding the kids who need to get free meals that excludes the kids who don't need to get free meals. The class division causes problems
in this type of situation because some parents get mad over how they have to pay for school meals and other children don't. It creates a division of kids who don't understand why they have to pay and other students don't. Then, when all the kids who are using money for school lunches find out why some of the students don't have to pay, it causes the more fortunate kids to be exposed and humiliated because they have to explain that their parents don't make enough money to provide lunch that needs to be paid for. CNN disagrees by saying, “76% of America's school districts have kids with school lunch debt, according to the School Nutrition Association. The horror stories keep coming. In 2015, a Colorado cafeteria worker says she was fired for personally paying for a first grader's meal. Last year, a Pennsylvania lunch lady quit in protest after being forced to take food away from a student who was $25 in debt” (CNN economy, 2017). Even though lunch shaming exists in many schools, Judging a survey from 50 school districts that are more populated, out of 40 schools that give free meals and have to deal with unpaid meals only a few exhibit bad behavior of humiliated students ( School lunch without shame, 2017). To some giving kids free meals seems like picking and choosing who gets to lucky pick, and to others it seems like a valuable way to help kids; but class division of kids over free meals and reduced price meals can be solved by giving all kids free meals. Therefore, all students of all schools deserve to be getting free lunches due to its healthy style and its way of blending all wealth levels. Picking and choosing who gets a lunch is not the way to run a school, we can't blame the kids for how much their parents make. It shouldn't matter. A few ways to respect this idea are to be open minded. Cafeteria workers, don't embarrass the students if one cant afford their lunch. Do not throw it away, don't take a lunch from a child. Students don't pay attention to the ones who need a little help affording their lunch, if a child is seen with a stamp or wrist band or having trouble with the lunch workers do not stare, don't talk about it. Support them. If the students and parents stick together and support or fight for this law to be made then the students of the future will have many more opportunities to strive to be the greatest students they can be, and they will be striving not on an empty stomach.
middle of paper ... ... But after seeing the plight of the current free and reduced system, and looking at how much it would cost comparatively to other government ventures, I understood that universal free could definitely be a possibility and a welcomed change to the current system. Overall, this book was a very eye-opening read that I would suggest to everyone, especially those that want to see school lunches evolve into something awesome not only for children but also for agriculture. After reading this book, I am ready to get out there and try to pursue change in the school lunch system so that my children’s generation can go to school knowing that they will be fed right, responsibly, and without fear of being stigmatized.
Though proponents of this method argue that it has lowered meal debt and the amount of families failing to pay, Stacy Koltiska refutes this claim by saying: “[The ones making these policies] are suits at a board meeting… They are not the ones facing a child and looking them in the eye and taking their food away.” While it is irrefutable that debt in schools is a problem that must be tackled, it is not a justifiable excuse to take a child’s midday meal out of his or her hands and throw it into a trash can because his or her parents can not put money into their child’s lunch account. There is no excuse for denying a child a hot meal or making them go hungry during the school day for something that is not their fault. Their dietary and nutritional needs are not a bargaining tool for the school system to use under any
Schools are spending too much money with this program that could be spent on other benefits for schools. Rather than using the money to get students new technology or property it 's wasted on a lunch program that students do not enjoy nor want to purchase. In the Article, “School Lunch Food is Not Fresh, Students Say” Journalist Audrey Levine interviews high school students about they feel about their school lunches. “It’s way too expensive now, but I’m still buying,” said senior Stephanie Huang. “And I don’t think more people are bringing lunch because
In Ted Talk, according to Ann Cooper, we have to change school lunches and educate children about a food by creating farming class, so they can verify what foods are benefit for themselves, and they are able to avoid unhealthy foods. There are two types of foods: healthy foods and unhealthy foods. Healthy foods equal to organic foods which are fresh as an element of healthy foods. In contrast, unhealthy foods equal to processed foods that contain chemicals. The USDA allows all of processed foods that are harmful to our children. According to the USDA, the USDA stands for United States Department of Agriculture that controls our food system. Cooper stated that we have to be ashamed for our food system as the richest country. The U.S. spends
As discussed throughout this paper there has been controversy about Michelle Obama’s school lunch guidelines. The reader has heard multiple arguments developed from this topic from each viewpoint expressed in this dispute. Now it is up to them to take a side.This paper is about Michelle Obama’s school lunch guidelines and how they are affecting schools and students across the nation. To help reduce the number of overweight children in America, Michelle Obama made lunch regulations schools had to follow and sparked a widespread conflict.
Today, La Mirada High School has a “closed campus” lunch policy. A closed campus lunch policy means that students can not leave campus to eat and are forced to eat food provided by the district at a price rate which the school chooses. Each year La Mirada and other High Schools alike sell hundreds of lunches a day totalling in thousands of dollars in sales. Money is most likely a major factor in why most schools don’t have an “open campus” lunch policy. Is it right that schools only provide one alternative to bringing a sack of lunch to school when it comes to feeding students at school? To me, a policy such as closed campus lunch is unjust and needs to be revised.
We all remember that day when President Obama took office, and our school lunches changed forever. First Lady Michelle Obama, felt that too many American kids are overweight, so she thought she needed to make our school lunches healthier, with more fruits and vegetables. One of the major changes she made was how many calories the school cooks were able to give the kids. The new requirements are as follows: up to 650 for children in kindergarten through fifth grade, 700 for sixth through eighth graders and 850 for high scholars. These numbers are consistent with the Mayo Clinic’s recommendations ( Kuczynski-Brown). The main goal of cutting calories and taking away junk food, was to insure that kids are getting served a healthy lunch. At each lunch, schools must still provide a cup of fruit, a cup of vegetables, two servings of grains, two ounces of dairy, and a cup of fluid milk, so that students can get their needed vitamins and nutrients (Anonymous) . They are also wanting more local farmers to be involved, and give more of the food they grow to the school. At the high school I went to, we built a green house, and planted a garden to give us some local grown food. It was part of our Ag Science class. More and more schools are starting to do the same thing. The stats of overweight kids is really high. The guidelines are as follows:
This is not the first time the U.S. has faced problems with the health of the nation. In 1946, President Harry S. Truman signed the National School Lunch Act. This legislation came in response to claims that many American men were rejected for military service due to diet related health issues. School lunch was established as “a measure of national security, to safeguard the health and well-being of the nation’s children and to encourage the domestic consumption of nutritious agricultural commodities and other food (Gunderson, 2013).”
Fruits and vegetables are now considered two separate groups, with increased servings. Since Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act went into effect School districts have been struggled to executing the program, the backlash from students was almost immediate children began throwing away most of their lunch.”The School Nutrition Association said that 70 percent of school meal programs had taken a significant financial hit since the new mandates went into effect. Cafeteria operators from Los Angeles to New York report discouraging amounts of food waste and declining
before the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, school lunches tasted terrible to me and I
Wu, Sarah. Fed up with Lunch: How One Anonymous Teacher Revealed the Truth about School Lunches--and How to Change Them! San Francisco, CA: Chronicle, 2011. E
Do you remember your favorite “School Lunch”? I do, I essentially had two favorites; pizza and hamburgers with fries. Think back, wasn’t there at least one school lunch that the lunch ladies made that everyone was so excited to eat. Kids that habitually brought their super hero lunch box with thermos would leave it at home and be in line for pizza or burgers and fries. We could also go back for “seconds”, it was the best meal of the week including what was served at home. The federal government has been involved in the NSLP (National School Lunch Program) since 1946 with the implementation of the National School Lunch Act. These initial programs developed the commodity distribution program for schools, institutions, needy households, summer
Many families who cannot afford to buy their child school lunch everyday cannot afford to feed their child a healthy breakfast either. This program looked to bridge that gap. However, it was not only created for the low-income families in mind, but also the families with early and long commutes who have too much time between breakfast and lunch. Eligibility for free and reduced breakfast are the same as for lunch, but school reimbursements differ. For a free lunch, the school is reimbursed $1.66, a reduced price lunch $1.36, and a paid lunch $0.29.
Students learn and do their best when they are hungry, and uncomfortable! That makes perfect sense right? If you’re like most Americans, this may be one of the most ridiculous statements you have ever heard. I know I have never done anything better hungry. Many students sit through their lunch time at school because they have no food to eat because they don’t have the money to afford it, or they are not able to bring food from home for various reasons. This is why many schools have free and reduced lunch programs. But not everybody can apply for these programs; even middle class families in today’s economy sometimes can’t give their child cash every day. Times are tough, and every family is different. These are good programs, but they are not good enough. One child missing a meal, and going hungry is too many in my book. That’s why I think it should be at least a state law in North Carolina, if not a federal law, that offers free lunch in all public schools for all students, regardless of income. This way it’s simple, cost effective and easy, and nobody will be singled out, or go hungry if they do not bring their lunch from home.
This rule forces campuses to cut back on the amount of junk food served. They have also tried to take away the ability to serve free meals to children who do not paperwork to prove they need free lunch, such as children with SNAP or children whose parents have low income. SNAP is a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. This helps families with low income buy food for their family. It is most commonly known as food stamps. Cutting this can cause children who do not have enough money in their lunch account, to not be able to eat. A child can pick the food they want on their tray, and when they go to pay they do not have enough money in their account. Their tray will be taken and thrown into the garbage. Instead of allowing this child to eat and just credit it to their account, we waste