All Durham Public Schools students will receive free breakfasts and lunches in the 2024-25 school year.
The math is a little complicated, but when you add it up, DPS can offer free meals to all. Here’s how it works:
The DPS Board of Education voted unanimously in March to implement the Community Eligibility Provision, a metric created by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that reimburses schools based on students’ participation in other programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
The provision requires that 25% of students’ families are identified as low-income through means other than an application for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals. As of this year, the district-wide rate is 46%. The district is also required to allocate federal Title I funding in a way that aligns with school-level percentages.
Having met both of these requirements, DPS will now offer free breakfasts and lunches at all 56 district schools. Previously, students in 28 schools received free meals.
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