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Board authorizes magistrate action to collect overdue student meal accounts after outreach efforts
Summary
Faced with roughly $30,000 in negative student meal balances, the board authorized referral to the district magistrate as a last resort after administration said staff had attempted outreach and collection and other remedies had been exhausted.
The Elizabethtown Area School District board on April 22 authorized administrative action to pursue outstanding negative student meal balances through the district magistrate if other collection efforts fail.
Business administrator Clint Strickler and cafeteria staff reported the district had reduced outstanding balances through recent outreach but still faced approximately $30,000 in negative student meal accounts. The administration described a stepped approach: district staff first attempt to contact families, explore free and reduced‑price meal eligibility, identify philanthropic or school‑based support (for example, the Giant store sponsorship work referenced by a community volunteer), and establish payment plans where feasible. The board heard that the food service fund’s surplus cannot be used to offset family accounts and that recourse to the magistrate would be a last resort for long‑unresolved balances.
After discussion, the board voted by roll call to authorize referral to the district magistrate for unresolved student meal debt. Board members and the administration said they would continue to pursue less‑adversarial remedies first and that magistrate referral was intended as a final measure for large, long‑standing balances.
