School meal debt has been surging this school year, placing burdens on families and the districts charged with holding them financially accountable.
All students, regardless of income, ate free of charge in schools nationwide during the first two years of the pandemic. That unprecedented policy from Congress ran out in September.
Three states鈥擟alifornia, Colorado, and Maine鈥攈ave permanently picked up where the federal government left off. Massachusetts, Nevada, and Vermont are keeping universal meals free at least through this school year.
But the rest have returned to the pre-pandemic status quo鈥攁nd some even to account for the rising costs of food production, preparation, and transportation.
Millions of students each year collectively rack up in school meal debt, including children who are ineligible for federally subsidized school meals but may still not be able to afford daily school meals.
Meal debt is painful for those who accrue it and those who impose it. Hiring debt collectors can be time-consuming and can put families in uncomfortable situations, and it鈥檚 illegal for districts in several states, including and .
Here are six other ways districts can handle a debt crisis that appears unlikely to abate anytime soon.
1. Offering 鈥榓lternative meals鈥� to students with outstanding debt
How It Works: Students without meal debt get full access to the daily food offerings, while students with meal debt get a smaller, bare-minimum alternative (like a cheese sandwich and a drink) that鈥檚 cheaper to produce.
Students still get to eat on the district鈥檚 dime, and the district saves resources and avoids falling deeper into debt. The Guilford County schools in North Carolina, where 5,700 of the district鈥檚 70,000 students had , is taking this approach.
鈥淣utrition is still a priority, and we want it to look like a full tray of food, which it will be, and something that they would like,鈥� Travis Fisher, the district鈥檚 executive director of student nutrition, said during a December school board meeting.
This practice risks fomenting the phenomenon known as 鈥渓unch shaming,鈥� which is illegal in a growing number of states. Schools in those states are prohibited from penalizing or embarrassing students who are unable to pay for school meals. Students who receive 鈥渁lternative meals鈥� may endure jeers from peers who get more robust meals. And these smaller meals may not be as nutritious or filling.
The 12,500-student Ankenny district in Iowa tried this approach in the mid-2010s, giving kids with outstanding meal debt a 鈥渟ack lunch鈥� instead of a hot meal. It didn鈥檛 sit well, said Scott Litchfield, the district鈥檚 nutrition director.
鈥淢oney is not a kid problem, it鈥檚 an adult problem,鈥� Litchfield said. 鈥淟et鈥檚 not take it out on the kids.鈥�
2. Finding money in the district budget to forgive existing debt
How It Works: For some districts with extra money sitting in their general fund, eliminating families鈥� school meal obligations is a no-brainer.
This decision creates goodwill between school administrators and parents. Last year, the 1,200-student Bristol Borough district in Pennsylvania used excess general fund dollars to forgive $21,000 in debt, relieving families of debt burdens that had accumulated for several years.
Districts with tighter financial margins might find this approach simply isn鈥檛 possible鈥攚idening inequities between well- and poorly-resourced districts. Forgiving existing debt doesn鈥檛 prevent debt from continuing to build up. In Bristol Borough, for instance, students began accumulating debt once again this school year.
3. Creating a community donation fund managed by the district
How It Works: In the Ankenny school district, anytime a student鈥檚 meal debt exceeds $50, a social worker or other district employee will contact the family.
鈥淪ome people say, 鈥楴o, I can pay next week and take care of it,鈥欌�� Litchfield said. 鈥淪ome people say, 鈥業 really need help.鈥� 鈥�
That help comes with the district鈥檚 Filling Up Every Learner program. The district solicits small donations from community members, and then uses the funds to pay for any meals students purchase after accruing $50 in debt.
鈥淏ased on meal prices, they could accrue $300, $400 in debt, but they would only be responsible for $50,鈥� Litchfield said.
Families know that they won鈥檛 be on the hook for hundreds of dollars if their income consistently doesn鈥檛 permit them to pay for their students to eat at school.
Managing this fund takes effort and relies on the generosity of the community. Litchfield said his district鈥檚 residents have been supportive, but it might be harder to garner support depending on the place.
4. Soliciting donations to wipe out families鈥� burdens
How It Works: Sometimes a wealthy benefactor or a diligent community organization is all a district needs to solve its school meal debt crisis in one fell swoop. This benefactor could be, as in recently publicized instances, a , a , a , a , a , a , an , a , a , a , or even a TikTok user.
The school district doesn鈥檛 have to lift a finger to help ease the strain on its families鈥� wallets.
There鈥檚 no guarantee a benefactor will emerge, nor that their act of generosity will carry over into future years.
5. Selling their debt
How It Works: This relatively new and novel approach would involve districts partnering with the Debt Collective, a nationwide nonprofit organization that advocates for people dealing with student debt, medical debt, school meal debt, and more.
The Debt Collective is in the early stages of proposing to buy districts鈥� debt on the secondary market at a fraction of the cost of the total amount, then erase it so that families are no longer on the hook.
The idea might seem far-fetched, but it鈥檚 already played out elsewhere. The city council of Toledo, Ohio, last November to forgive more than $200 million worth of medical debt held by roughly 40,000 people. The local government in Cook County, Ill., took the same approach last summer, investing $12 million in federal funds to give $1 billion in medical debt. Both of these local governments partnered with the nonprofit organization RIP Medical Debt, which was recently .
Districts that receive a proposal like this might be more motivated to find other, quicker solutions to the problem.
Bristol Borough鈥檚 decision to forgive its existing meal debt came after Debt Collective members contacted the district proposing the secondary market scheme, said Jason Wozniak, a professor at West Chester University and an organizer with Debt Collective.
鈥淚n the end we didn鈥檛 even have to bargain with them at all,鈥� Wozniak said. 鈥淭hey just decided they were going to cancel it.鈥�
The idea is somewhat convoluted and might not always be met with enthusiasm. Wozniak said some Debt Collective members received a hostile reception from some parents when they presented a similar idea at a different school board meeting, though the nature of their objections wasn鈥檛 clear.
6. Advocating for legislation that eliminates future meal debt
How It Works: Universal free school meal policies circumvent the meal debt problem altogether. Six states already have them in place at least through the end of the year, and talks are ongoing for universal free school meals in .
It鈥檚 a more permanent solution than any debt forgiveness or cancellation plan, which only deals with existing debt, not future debt. It鈥檚 also a broadly popular policy with , and even from public figures like .
Enacting legislation takes time, and student meals can鈥檛 wait.
