Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Meals topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Winston County board approves CNP meal pricing, outlines steps to sustain free meals and capped summer feeding
Summary
The board approved Child Nutrition Program pricing for 2026–27 and heard staff describe using the Community Eligibility Provision to keep meals free while pursuing higher participation; staff also detailed a capped summer feeding plan serving up to 1,600 households per distribution with sign-ups via QR code starting May 22.
The Winston County Board of Education on May 14 approved proposed Child Nutrition Program (CNP) meal pricing for the 2026–27 school year and discussed measures to preserve free school meals through the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) and a capped summer feeding program.
Why it matters: Changes to meal pricing and participation in CEP affect reimbursements the district receives and can alter the child nutrition fund balance, influencing other district budget choices.
Mr. Scott presented the pricing and explained that the district currently participates in CEP, which allows universal free meals when certain participation thresholds are met. He said the district has seen participation fall from about 94% in earlier years to roughly 87% this year, creating "a 6% amount that we're short" in reimbursements when fewer students pick up meals. He told the board staff will pursue administrative changes, including adjusting how the school day starts and exploring classroom breakfast for upper grades, to increase participation.
On breakfast participation Mr. Scott said low uptake is driven partly by arrival patterns and encouraged efforts to create "a unified place that they start their day" or allow grab-and-go in classrooms so more students take a meal.
Board members approved the CNP pricing motion by voice vote.
Staff also outlined the district's summer feeding plan, which they described as a bulk-feeding program capped at 1,600 households per service date and scheduled across seven service dates. Each participating household will be able to receive 10 meals (breakfasts and lunches) across the program, with seven meals provided on the final pickup because of the school calendar. Staff said the district applied for a bulk waiver to allow distribution of multiple days' meals at once and cautioned that children cannot participate in two districts' summer feeding programs simultaneously, which staff characterized as a violation of federal rules.
District staff said sign-ups will use QR codes; the sign-up link and pickup maps will be posted on the district Facebook page and the sign-up opens May 22 at 10:00 a.m. The district noted it contracted with a vendor referred to in the meeting as "C level social media" to manage registrations.
What happens next: Staff will provide follow-up plans for boosting daily participation and will post sign-up information and maps on the district Facebook page on May 22. The board did not take further action on implementation during this meeting.
