Beaman students testify for school meals; district wins Chefs to Schools grant and board approves healthy-food certification

A group of Beaman Middle School students who testifyied recently to state lawmakers urged support for school meals and farm‑to‑school programs, and Middletown Public Schools won a three‑year Chefs to Schools grant to place a professional chef in the district.

The testimonials, described by the district during its March 12 board meeting, were given to the state education and finance committees and highlighted students’ interest in maintaining free or broadly available school meals and in linking local food to cafeterias. Superintendent Dr. Vasquez Matos and cafeteria lead Jen Pratt told the board the district had been notified it was one of five Connecticut districts awarded the Chefs to Schools grant, which will fund a chef position for at least three years.

The board also voted to adopt the state’s Healthy Food Certification, a requirement under Connecticut law that commits the district to meet the Connecticut Nutrition Standards for foods sold to students. The board approved three motions: the certification itself for the 2025–26 year; a limited exemption allowing sales of nonconforming items at events held after the official school day or on weekends at the event location; and the same exemption specifically for beverages. Randall Lehi, who introduced the student group at the meeting, and school food staff said the certification brings an estimated 10 cents more per reimbursable lunch and roughly $41,000 in additional revenue for the district to support food service standards.

District staff said the students who testified described a mix of nerves and influence: several speakers described long waits during the testimony process but said they had persuaded at least one legislator or listener to change position. Beaman students also prepared a recipe and food samples for the board in honor of Board Appreciation Month; district staff thanked the students for representing Middletown at the state level.

Board members discussed the state funding context for school meals, noting some uncertainty at the federal and state level about whether universal free‑meal funding would continue and that some districts were reconsidering the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) because of that uncertainty. The superintendent and board urged continued advocacy and highlighted the students’ role in making the case.

The board’s motions carried without recorded roll‑call tallies; each motion was approved after the usual “all in favor” voice vote. The administration said staff will post the Chefs to Schools position and that the additional per‑meal funds will be used to support Connecticut Nutrition Standards implementation.