Have you ever wished school lunch could have been free, so you didn’t have to worry about waiting for your next paycheck just to be able to eat?

“The school lunch costs $3.50 for students who don’t qualify for free or reduced lunch,” said cafeteria worker Jess Coats. 

Paying $3.50 for school lunch every day isn’t easy. Not everyone can afford it, that’s why there’s a free and reduced school lunch program available for those who can’t afford it. 

“Not only Parkway South gets it but the whole nation it’s a free program,” said Coats. 

School lunch should be free for everyone, according to students like junior Maryan Abdi,

“School lunch should be free because we go through 7 more hours of school and we should be rewarded for it,” she said. 

Senior Connor Farnsworth agrees with her.

”Everyone deserves the ability to eat and take care of their basic needs,” he said.

Abdi said paying $3.50 for school lunch every day is expensive and not everyone can afford it.

“Paying that amount every day is difficult, and many people don’t have enough money to cover it five days a week,” Abdi said. 

Farnsworth talked about how some students might count on school as the only place they can get a solid meal.

“It’s not fair how not everyone gets free lunch, lunch should be free for everyone because not everyone has high-quality food at home,”  Farnsworth said.

The Director of Food Service for Parkway is Rachael Mintz. She said, for those who don’t pay for school lunches, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) pays. 

“The benefits for all would be that the National School Lunch Program (NSLP)  provides nutritionally balanced meals for students. In addition, the meals are provided at low-cost or no-cost to children who qualify. Children can qualify for free or reduced price school meals based on household income and family size. This program ensures that children with food insecurity have access to a nutritionally balanced meal at breakfast and lunch each day they attend school,” Mintz said.  

Students have always paid for school meals with the exception of two years during the COVID pandemic, when the federal government provided free meals for all students.

“Children from families with incomes at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty level are eligible for free meals. Those with incomes between 130 and 185 percent of the federal poverty level are eligible for reduced price meals,” she said. “In order to apply for the free & reduced meal program, a parent must fill out the Free/Reduced meal application form.“