Northville Schools preserve free lunches as statewide program face uncertain future
Northville Schools vote to preserve free lunch program
If state lawmakers don?t pass a budget by next week, the program will be discontinued. Northville Public Schools isn?t waiting; their school board has decided to keep providing meals for at least another month.
NORTHVILLE, Mich. (FOX 2) - Families in school districts around the state face uncertainty as they await the future of the free lunch program.
Big picture view:
If state lawmakers don’t pass a budget by next week, the program will be discontinued. Northville Public Schools isn’t waiting; their school board has decided to keep providing meals for at least another month.
Regardless of whether a school district is affluent or cash-strapped, each district is scrambling to preserve this program, primarily because studies have shown it impacts a student’s behavior and ability to learn.
Here’s how Northville Public Schools funds its free lunch program:
- There are 7,000 students enrolled in the district.
- It costs $400,000 a month for its free lunch program.
Dig deeper:
To make this work without a budget, the district will pull from its general fund, which can be thought of as a rainy day fund. This is essentially a band-aid on a problem plaguing every school district in the state. The Northville School Board unanimously approved a measure to extend its free lunch program through October if a budget isn’t passed. Board members and the district’s CFO had a half-hour conversation weighing their options.
What they're saying:
On Wednesday, Fox 2 sat down with Superintendent R.J. Webber about the decision.
"If you went into your boss and said, ‘Hey, I’m taking the next three months off,’" said Webber. "Don’t call me. I’m not going to do my job.’ My guess is, Brandon, you’re not going to have a job at the end of three months. Extensively, July first was the deadline for this work to have been done. I don’t know of any world I can think of where they could not complete what they’re obligated to do for three months and it be okay."
"It seems like your kids are a priority. It’s safe to say that, right?" asked Fox 2's Brandon Hudson.
"Absolutely, right," Webber replied.
"Do you feel they’re a priority to the people you’ve put in office in Lansing?" Hudson asked.
"It really doesn’t feel that way right now," Webber answered.
During our conversation with Dr. Webber, we learned that taking away the free lunch program doesn’t just impact the children. Food service workers could get laid off if this program goes away.
What's next:
If state lawmakers don’t pass a budget by the end of October, Northville’s board will have to vote again on an extension.