Crothersville students to receive free meals in 2022-23 school year

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CROTHERSVILLE — Crothersville Community School Corp. students will receive free breakfast and lunch for the third straight school year.

The small southeastern Jackson County school district shared the good news on its Facebook page Monday.

The past two school years, corporations in the state received free meals due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The program that was introduced in the 2021-22 school year giving schools an opportunity to provide free meals is called Community Eligibility Provision.

It’s an alternative to collecting, approving and verifying household eligibility applications for free and reduced price eligible students in high-poverty local educational agencies for schools participating in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, according to the Indiana Department of Education website.

To be eligible, the LEA must have one or more schools with an identified student percentage of 40% or greater on the direct certified list, which means students or other household members who receive food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families or Medicaid.

The LEA and school must agree to offer all enrolled students breakfast and lunch at no cost and cover any cost above the federal reimbursement received with nonfederal funds.

CEP is approved for four successive school years with an option annually to return to traditional meal counting and claiming procedures.

Annette King, deputy treasurer, book rental treasurer and cafeteria treasurer for Crothersville, said she learned about the opportunity through the IDOE’s child nutrition department.

“I get emails from them every week, and it just talks about what’s going on and what you need to be doing. That’s just one of the things that they tell you that’s upcoming if you want to apply for this,” she said.

On April 1, she ran a direct certified list to see what percentage of students in the elementary and junior-senior high schools is on free and reduced meals.

“Then you have to contact your field specialist, and they just tell you from there what you need to do, which is basically setting up a meeting, and then they come and look at your list,” King said. “There’s some paperwork to fill out.”

Crothersville schools’ percentage was higher a few years ago, but King said it still was in the ballpark to qualify for the program. The field specialist came down to meet with King on July 14 to get everything ironed out.

“We worked on that all day long, and she left and said she was pretty sure that we were good to go but to wait for an email,” King said.

On Monday, King double-checked with the field specialist, and she told her Crothersville could advertise meals would be free for students in the new school year.

“Gas and groceries are all so high right now, and I just hated that we weren’t going to have that free lunch and breakfast again this year because I felt like everybody could probably use it another year at least,” King said. “It’s just nice to be able to do something for the community behind the scenes.”

Considering all of the time and effort she put into applying, King said it was very emotional when she learned Crothersville was approved.

“Coming back to school is so expensive anyway,” she said. “Everybody needs new shoes and school supplies and books, so it’s just nice to be able to help in some small way.”

Thanks to donations made by the community through The Helping Hearts initiative, Crothersville students will have an opportunity to pick up backpacks and school supplies during a registration event from noon to 8 p.m. today in the school gymnasiums and during a block party from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday at Bard Street Park.

That’s another way parents and students can save money as Crothersville’s first day of school approaches Aug. 2.

King encourages other school corporations to apply for the CEP program in the future.

“This program, it lasts for four years, but at the end of this (school) year, if the reimbursements don’t cover the cost of the food, by June 30, I have to let them know that we’re not going to do it next year. It’s good for four years, but I can opt out at any time,” she said. “I’m just going to try it out this first year and see how it goes. I really hope and pray that the reimbursements are good enough that we can continue to stay in there.”

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