Advocates Seek To Expand School Lunch Program

Print More
MP3

 

Every school day 37,000 Vermont students get free or reduced price meals at school.

Advocates say students who are well-fed are better able to learn and also say the program is key to reducing hunger in America.

But some would like to make the school meals program free for all low-income students, and in doing so, eliminate the reduced price category. That idea is behind two bills at the State house, and it was also the topic of a policy discussion at the University of Vermont this week.

But our guest today would like to see school meals free for ALL students, regardless of income. Janet Poppendiek is the author of "Free for All: Fixing School Food In America."

Poppendiek tells VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb the biggest problem is how we ask families to pay for school lunch, based on a three-tiered system:

 

Click listen to hear the interview. 

Poppendiek will be speaking Tuesday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Davis Center at the University of Vermont.

Comments are closed.