CITIZEN STAFF REPORT

WILLIAMSON, W.Va. — Students at all nine Mingo County schools are expected to receive breakfast and lunch at no cost during the school year through the federal Community Eligibility Provision.

Mingo County Schools announced Tuesday that it plans to continue participating in the CEP. This program allows schools in qualifying high-poverty areas to provide meals to all students without collecting individual applications for free or reduced-price meals.

The school district expects the program to provide meals to nearly 3,350 students each day.

“We are happy to provide school meals to students in Mingo County at no cost,” Superintendent Dr. Joetta Basile said. “We know academic achievement increases when our students have access to healthy meals.”

The Community Eligibility Provision was established under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. Schools qualify based on the percentage of students who are automatically eligible for free meals through participation in certain assistance programs or other qualifying circumstances.

Under the program, participating schools do not have to collect, approve and verify household applications for free and reduced-price meals.

Mingo County Schools said this marks the fourth year the district has used the option.

The district also pointed to food insecurity as an ongoing concern for West Virginia families. A 2017 Feeding America Map the Meal Gap report cited in the district’s announcement found that more than 14% of West Virginia residents and more than 79,000 children lived in food-insecure households at that time.

For more information about the school meal program, contact the Mingo County Child Nutrition Office at 304-235-7142.