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Camdenton board keeps student meal prices unchanged for 2026–27
Summary
After hearing that district meal debt has fallen and staff secured a local foods grant, the board voted to hold student and adult meal prices at current rates for the 2026–27 school year to ease costs for families not qualifying for free or reduced meals.
The Camdenton R-III school board voted June 8 to keep 2026–27 meal prices at the previous year’s levels after hearing a report from food services staff about reduced meal debt, grant funding and outreach strategies.
Food services staff recommended not raising prices for the coming year, saying the decision would help families who do not qualify for free or reduced-price meals. “I really think that this is a good time to not raise the prices because I know we’re going to have to do it next year,” the food services presenter said, arguing the pause would reduce burdens on families and allow continued work to lower outstanding balances.
Staff reported a substantial drop in meal debt compared with the previous year (from roughly $121,573 at this time last year to below $80,000 this year) and said targeted outreach, adjusted repayment arrangements and renewed donations helped. The presenter also told the board the district secured a renewed local foods grant for $71,953.73 to support meals and local food purchases.
The board approved a motion to keep meal prices unchanged for 2026–27 with the listed rates: elementary breakfast $1.80 and lunch $2.50; reduced breakfast $0.30 and reduced lunch $0.40; secondary breakfast $0.85 and secondary lunch $2.75. The motion was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote.
Board members discussed outreach to families during registration to complete free/reduced applications and options to make the form completion more automatic for families eligible in prior years. Staff said families who qualified remain eligible until Oct. 1 and that district teams will use registration events and targeted phone or portal outreach to boost reapplications.
Why it matters: Meal pricing affects families’ out-of-pocket costs and the district’s ability to manage unpaid balances while preserving federal-eligibility data used by other programs.
What’s next: Staff will continue fundraising and community partnerships, pursue additional grant opportunities, and use registration-period outreach to increase free/reduced application completion.
