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Prince William County credits CEP expansion with large meal service and reduced debt
Summary
Prince William County's director of food and nutrition described expanding Community Eligibility (CEP) to more schools after USDA lowered the ISP threshold, reporting millions of school meals served last year and measurable reductions in unpaid meal debt at participating schools.
Andrea Early, director of food and nutrition for Prince William County Schools, told the commission that the division has prioritized high-quality meals, expanded alternative breakfast models and pushed CEP expansion after USDA lowered the ISP threshold to 25%.
Early reported scale and local effects: "We served 4,476,014 breakfast and 9,936,734 lunches in Prince William County," she said, and described adding 24 schools to CEP under the lower identified-student percentage, which gave roughly 27,000 additional students access to free meals. Early said CEP participation cut meal debt and reduced stigma because students receive the same tray as peers; she also flagged rising food and labor costs outpacing federal reimbursements as an operational challenge. The district described summer non-congregate distributions that served more than 114,000 meals at one site and operational changes such as breakfast-in-the-classroom that boosted participation.
Why it matters: Early's data provide a practical case study for commissioners weighing state funding levers and technical assistance to expand CEP and alternative-service models across other districts.
