Latest news with #CarlBenEielsonMiddleSchool
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Nutritious school meals are essential for learning
A student carries a school meal at Fargo's Carl Ben Eielson Middle School on Jan. 22, 2025. (Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor) The Together for School Meals coalition is deeply disappointed by the North Dakota House's decision to defeat House Bill 1475, a bill that would have provided free school meals to every child in our state. This legislation had the potential to transform the lives of thousands of North Dakota children, ensuring no student would have to sit in a classroom hungry. While we appreciate the effort to expand income eligibility for school meals to 225% of the federal poverty level (up from 200%), this change still leaves too many families struggling to afford meals for their children. Access to nutritious meals is fundamental to a child's ability to learn, thrive and reach their full potential. When children are well-fed, they are better able to focus, participate and succeed in school. School meals are as essential to education as textbooks and teachers — hunger should never be a barrier to learning. Yet, for many families in North Dakota, the rising costs of groceries, rent and other necessities make it difficult to afford daily meals, creating stress, hardship and hunger for many children. The leadership of young people on this issue has been inspiring — and we need to listen. From the powerful testimonies of students in committee hearings to community initiatives like the one highlighted in the Minot Daily News, youth voices have been at the forefront of advocating for free school meals. In the article, Minot High School senior Avery Dodd, who helped launch the MPS No Lunch Debt initiative to raise funds to pay off $20,000 in school meal debt, captured the heart of the issue: 'For a lot of kids, their school lunches are the one hot meal a day they get. Not everyone is fortunate enough to go home and have dinner ready. It just creates a lot of financial stress and anxiety on parents, and sometimes even on the students because they have no say over it. It's an anxiety passed on to them.' The Together for School Meals coalition agrees wholeheartedly. House Bill 1475 would have provided significant financial relief to hardworking families — putting an estimated $850 per child per year back into the pockets of parents already stretched thin. The bill also would have helped reduce the stigma associated with school meal debt and the burden placed on school staff tasked with collecting unpaid meal fees. During testimony we heard legislators did not want to feed the 'wealthy's children.' Let's set the record straight as this is a very small percentage of the population. A living wage in North Dakota for a family of four, with both adults working is over $103,000 with most North Dakota family households making under $100,000. Additionally, passing healthy school meals for all is a critically important lever to pull as we strive to become the healthiest state in the nation. The overwhelming public support shows North Dakotans believe every child deserves to be nourished and ready to learn. The Together for School Meals coalition remains steadfast in our commitment to ensuring every child in North Dakota has access to healthy, nutritious meals at school. We call on lawmakers to find a way forward and pass a free school meals policy this legislative session. The authors signed this on behalf of 86 members of the Together for School Meals Coalition.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmakers expand free school meals in North Dakota after rejecting larger proposal
Students eat lunch at Carl Ben Eielson Middle School in Fargo on Jan. 22, 2025. (Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor) A day after rejecting free school meals for all North Dakota K-12 students, House members on Tuesday slightly increased the number of students who qualify for free lunch. Within House Bill 1013, the budget bill for the Department of Public Instruction, students from families within 225% of the federal poverty line would be eligible for free lunch. That's an increase from 200% of the poverty line that was funded in the 2023 session. At 225%, a family of four with an income of about $72,000 would qualify for free lunches. A public opinion poll earlier this year by the North Dakota News Cooperative showed strong public support for free school meals but the House on Monday voted down a bill to spend $140 million to pay for the meals. 'I know our emails have been blasted in the last week or so and on this, and I think we need to respond in some fashion, and this is the best thing I've seen so far,' Rep. Jon Nelson, R-Rugby, said during a meeting Tuesday of the House Appropriations Committee as it amended the bill. The House later approved the amended education bill on a 72-17 vote, with little discussion of school meals. The bill goes to the Senate. Free school lunch advocates call on Legislature to act As legislators have discussed free school meals bills this session, there have been questions about why the federal school meals program doesn't get more use. The 2023 expansion of the program provided $6 million to make more students eligible but only about half got used. The state education budget includes $4.5 million for the program this session. The state program provided free lunches to students who qualify for reduced-price lunch at the federal level, with the state making up the difference. Some families not eligible for the federal program also were covered by the state. Children from families with incomes at or below 130% of the federal poverty level are eligible for free meals, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture that operates the program. Those with incomes between 130% and 185% of the federal poverty level are eligible for reduced-price meals. Rep. Eric Murphy, R-Grand Forks, said Tuesday that at 200%, that's about the median income in North Dakota but the participation appears well below that, in part because it requires filling out a form. 'That parent has got to want to fill out the paperwork,' Murphy said. The Together for School Meals coalition, a group of more than 75 organizations, has been advocating for funding free school meals. 'While this is a step in the right direction, we strongly encourage the Legislature to continue seeking avenues to ensure every child in North Dakota has access to free breakfast and lunch at school,' coalition member Amy Jacobson said in a statement. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Free school meals bill fails in the North Dakota House
Students eat lunch at Carl Ben Eielson Middle School in Fargo on Jan. 22, 2025. Free school meal advocates in North Dakota are calling on the state Legislature to prioritize permanent funding to pay for meals. (Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor) A bill to provide free meals to North Dakota K-12 students failed in a House vote Monday. Members voted 54-39 against House Bill 1475, which proposed to use $140 million from North Dakota's general fund to pay for school breakfasts and lunches in the 2025-27 biennium. Rep. Don Vigesaa, R-Cooperstown, said the meal ticket was just too big a price for the state Legislature to pay. 'The only way to balance the budget is to not fund some of these large asks,' said Vigesaa, chair of the House Appropriations Committee. Proponents cited public support, alleviating meal debt for school districts and improved nutrition and school performance. Rep. Zac Ista, D-Grand Forks, said it was one way to help fight inflation for families with school children. 'All of us who promise that we're going to come here to lower costs, there are not that many levers we can pull to do that. This is one,' Ista said. The Together for School Meals coalition, made up of more than 75 groups that advocated for the bill, expressed 'deep disappointment' after the vote Monday. 'This bill had the power to ensure that no child goes hungry at school while putting real money — an estimated $850 per child per year — back into the pockets of hard-working parents,' said coalition member Amy Jacobson. Another bill, House Bill 1553, would have paid for school meals with earnings of the state Legacy Fund, which has swelled to $11 billion through oil tax revenue and investments. That bill was previously defeated in the House. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Free school meals bill advances in North Dakota legislative committee
Students eat lunch at Carl Ben Eielson Middle School in Fargo on Jan. 22, 2025. Free school meal advocates in North Dakota are calling on the state Legislature to prioritize permanent funding to pay for meals. (Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor) A legislative committee on Monday supported using $140 million from North Dakota's general fund to pay for school meals instead of using the state's Legacy Fund. The House Education Committee recommended passage of House Bill 1475, that would pay for lunches and breakfasts, ensuring that school districts will not be stuck with unpaid meal balances. The key difference between House Bill 1475, which had a hearing last week, and House Bill 1553, is where the funding would come from to pay for the meals. House Bill 1553 would use money from the state Legacy Fund earnings, instead of using money from the general fund. The Legacy Fund has ballooned to $11 billion through oil tax revenue and investments. Rep. LaurieBeth Hager, D-Fargo, the primary sponsor of the bill tapping the Legacy Fund, said she recognized that the general fund spending bill was 'more palatable' after the committee gave her bill a do-not-pass recommendation. 'The time has come,' she said of state-funded school meals. Free school meal bills draw bipartisan support, though questions about funding linger The general fund bill passed on an 8-5 vote; the Legacy Fund bill failed on an 8-5 vote. The bill spending general funds will go to the House Appropriations Committee but both bills will get a vote from the full House membership. Earlier Monday, public school students from Leeds, Mandan and Valley City were among those testifying in favor of the state paying for meals in school from the Legacy Fund earnings. Carter Hass of Valley City told the House Education Committee that his family has qualified for reduced meals. 'I am blessed to have everything that I do but I have been in the position where government services are a part of those blessings,' Hass said. Both bills are estimated to cost $140 million for 2025-2027. House Education Committee Chair Rep. Pat Heinert, R-Bismarck, cautioned against backing a bill with such a large price tag, saying that property tax reform should be the priority. 'Every time we take $140 million away, we run the risk of not getting property tax done properly,' Heinert said. 'When I ran my campaign and did door-to-door, I didn't have anybody for school lunches, but I had almost everybody asked me for property tax relief.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
