An Iowa School District Is Giving All Students Free Meals, Should The QC Do The Same?

Starting this fall, every child in the Council Bluffs School District will be able to eat breakfast and lunch for free.

According to The Daily Nonpareil, the entire district qualifies for USDA funding that will cover all meal costs. This will save families close to $700 per year for elementary and $900 a year for high school students.

Council Bluffs already had plenty of students eligible for free meals because they receive Medicaid. Now those families won't have to individually apply for free lunch, saving them paperwork and possible embarrassment. Plus, the school doesn't have to worry about food costs since the USDA reimbursement pays for the program.

Given the frequency of stories about kids with unpaid lunch fees going without food that has been popping up in the news, it makes you wonder if other Iowa communities, like the QC, could use a similar program.